iom 


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MILWAUKEE  PUBLIC  SCHOOLS 


PROJECTS 


AND 


GAMES 


IN  THE 


PRIMARY 
GRADES 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 
AT  LOS  ANGELES 


UNIVERSITY  of  CALIFOWfU 

AT 

LOS  ANGELES 

UBRA&Y 


MiLw  aukl^l:   puf^lic   schools 


nana 


PRQJECrS    AND    GAMES 

i\'  THE 

PRIMARY  GRADES 


By 


^E  PRIMARY  TEAC:ilERS  OF    11  IE  MILWAUKEE 
PUBLIC  SCHOOLS 

WITH  THE  ASSISSTANCE  OF  THE 

ASSISSTANT  SUPERINTENDENT 

IN   CHARGE  OU   PRIMARY 

INSTRUCTION 


Dann 


Ai'iiiomn  I)  HY  Tin: 

BOARD  OF  SCHOOL   DIRECiORS 


N(WI:MIM-R.    I'»22 
Mll.WAUKi:i:.   WISCONSIN 


256      11-22 


148888 


Copyrighted   1921 

BY 

Milwaukee  Board  of  School  Directors 


T 


1  i\  I     chiklrcn    shall    ^row    into    a   pro- 

^  \^    Jucti\  c  maturity,   sure  to  pull  their  own 

0^  weight,  capable  to  lend  a  hanJ  in  carry- 

>  ing   another's   load,    is    a    prime    desideratum. 

.  To    make    a    living    is    fundamental.      But    to 

•'  make  a   life    it    is    imi^ieratixe   to   dexelop   wise 

ways  of  employing  leisure  hours.      We  w  ish  all 

of    our   youth   to   learn    to   earn,    as   also   that 

many  of  them  shall  earn   to   learn.     To  either 

end    it    is   necessary    that    hard    work   shall    be 

done  in  the  spirit  of  happ\-  play.     All  the  work 

of   our    hands    returns    to    dust.        Continued 

power  of  creation  either  of  wealth  or  of  beauty 

must  depend  for  permanence   u|^on  continuous 

personal    recreation.  This    consi».leration    is 

most  dominant  in  child  life.       It  gi\'cs  \'alidity 

and  \italit\'  to  practical    working   actixilies   in 

all  school  (.iepiirtments." 

MILTON  C.  POI  ri;K. 

Ill     I  III     Pi  AVl.KliINU   li>r    .\ll«Vi    ■       !■'' 


A  REPUBLICS  CHIEF  BUSINESS 
IS  EDUCATIOX' 


FORi:\\()  Rn 


The  publication  of  the  first  edition  of  the 
bulletin  was  the  result  of  the  earnest  advocacy 
by  Superintendent  Milton  C.  Potter  of  suitable 
projects  and  games  as  a  means  of  facilitating 
the  learning  process.  To  insure  the  pupils" 
acquisition  of  a  definite  amount  of  basic 
knowledge,  the  teachers  limited  the  applica- 
tion of  these  modes  of  instruction  to  the  pre- 
scribed curriculum. 

In  the  compilation  of  the  bLillctin,  special 
service  was  rendered  by  those  teachers  and 
principals  who  contributed  reports  of  projects 
and  also  by  the  committee  of  primary  teachers, 
the  Misses  Hannah  Marl.s  (Chairman),  Mary 
E.  Sullivan,  Marie  A.  Lachet,  Harriet  Niedcr- 
man,  Clara  W'oltring,  and  Anna  B.  I'orrcsial. 
representing  the  1  cachcrs  C^Kincil.  in  select- 
ing the  games. 

Grateful  acknowledgment  is  hereby  made 
to  the  Board  of  School  Directors  for  their  gen- 
erous financial  assistance  in  the  matter  of 
publication    of    this    re\ised    an».l    illustrated 

(.xlilion. 

MARGARliT  CANT^'. 

As.SISIAM    Sin  RINII  NOKNT    IN 

CiiAiu.i;  <ii-  Prim.\kv  Instri'ction. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


Part  I— PROJECTS:  pace 

Synopsis  of  the  Project  Method 8 

Plan   for  Project  Teaching  in  the  First  Grade.  ..  12 

Standards  for  Judging  School  Projects 16 

Projects   as   a    Means   of   Motivating   the    Curri- 


cu 


lum: 


First  Grade 

A  Mimic  Theater 17 

The  Three  Bears 18 

A  Building  Block  Project 19 

Doll  Project 23 

A  Birthday  Party 24 

The  Picnic 26 

Easter  in  a  Primary    Room 29 

Grocery  Store 31 

Indian  Project 35 

The  Pilgrims 37 

Flower  Gardening  in  \\  indow  Boxes 38 

Germination  of  Seeds 40 

Health  Above  All 42 

Boats 44 

Mother  Goose 47 


Second   Grade 

Doll  House 52 

The  Home 55 

Home  Building 63 

Child's  Grocery   Store 70 

Farm  Animals 72 

Flow  Food   is  Obtained 76 

Birds 79 

An  Indian  Village 83 

Robinson  Crusoe 85 

The  Circus,  No.    1 88 

The  Circus,  No.  2 90 


Third   Grade  page 

A  Sand  Tabic  Desert 94 

The  Model  Store 94 

The  Story  of  Wheat 97 

Post  Office 100 

The  Stor\-  of  Cocoa  and  Chocolate 103 

Rain " 104 

Wind 10b 

A  Playlet  to  Celebrate  the  Diamond  Jubilee 

of  the  Citv  of  Milwaukee 114 

The  '"Zoo".  .  ../ 117 

The  American  Mag 121 


'art   II — Plav  as  a  Factor  in  Education 


GAMES:      Reading 12o 

Language 137 

Arithmetic U'-^ 

Spelling Ud 

Cjcography 1'^"' 

Bibliography 1  Tl) 

Index 174 


PART  I— PROJECTS 


SYNOPSIS  OF  THE  PROJECT  METHOD 

MARGAREI"  C.AN  TY,  Assistant  Superintendfnt. 


I.  Significance  of  the  Term   "Project." 

A.  Etymology: 

Latin — pro,   forward;    jacere,   to  throw. 
Something  projected  or  designed. 

B.  Ordinary  Connotation. 

"The  term  'project"  belongs  in  one  sense 
to  the  language  of  business — or  of  plans 
and  schemes  in  active  life.""  Teaching  by 
Projects" — Dr.  Charles  McMurry. 

C.  Application  to  Education. 

Dr.  Kilpatrick  defines  the  term  as  a  "whole- 
hearted, purposeful  act  in  a  social  situation." 
The  term  project  refers  to  any  unit  of  pur- 
poseful experience,  any  instance  of  domi- 
nating purpose,  as  an  inner  urge,  (1)  fixes 
the  aim  of  the  action,  (2)  guides  its  process, 
and  (3)  furnishes  its  drive,  its  inner  motiva- 
tion." (Teachers"  Collefie  Record,  Sept., 
1921.) 

II.  Nature  of  the  Project  Method. 

A.  Basis  principle — 

"Education  is  life" — Dewey. 

B.  The    project    method    represents    a    synthesis    of 

movenients  and  tendencies  in  educational 
theory  that  ha\e  been  gathering  momentum 
for  several  years — some  of  them  indeed  for 
several  decades.  It  represents  an  attempt 
to  formulate  these  tendencies  and  move- 
ments in  a  single  and  unified  pattern  of 
educational  procedure." — William  C.  Ba^jley. 

The  following  is  an  enumeration  of  the 
most  important  of  these  movements: 


'^Projects" 

1.  Motivation — 

(John  Dewey 
Frank  McMurry) 

2.  Self-expression — 

(Maria  Montessori 
Patty  S.  Hill) 

3.  Development    of    initiative    and    origi- 

nality— 

(Edward  L.  Thorndikc) 

4.  Socialization — 

(John  Dewey 
Colin  Scott 
Sarah  A.  Dynes) 

5.  Self-government — 

(John  Dewey 
Patty  S.  Hill 
Maria  Montessori 
William  Heard  Kilpatrick) 

6.  Correlation — 

(Frederick  G.   Bonser) 

7.  Recapitulation — 

(John  Dewey) 

8.  Problem  soKing — 

(John  Dewe\) 

9.  Laws  of  learning— 

(Fclwarcl  L.  Thorndike) 


Types  of  Projects  (Dr.  Kilpairick's  Classification)  — 

A.  The  embodiment  of  some  idea  or  plan  in  external 

form,  as  building  a  boat,  writing  a  letter. 
presenting  a  play.  The  procedure  is  as  fol- 
lows: 

1 .  Purposing 

2.  Planning 

3.  Executing 

4.  Judging 

B.  The    enjoyment    of   an    esthetic    experience,    as 

listening  to  a  story,  hearing  a  s\nii^h«>nv. 
appreciating  a  picture. 


Miliraiikcc  Public  Schools 

C.  Ihc  solution  of  some  problem  or  the  straight- 
ening out  of  some  intellectual  difficulty;  for 
example,  to  find  out  whether  or  not  dew 
falls;  to  ascertain  how  New  York  outgrew 
Philadelphia. 


J 


The  steps  in  the  procedure  are  those  of 
Dewey's  analysis  of  thought — "How  We 
Think,"  Chap.  VI,  p.  72: 

1 .  A  felt  difficulty. 

2.  Its  location  and  definition. 

3.  Suggestions  of  possible  solutions. 

4.  Development  by  reasoning  of  the  bear- 

ings of  the  suggestion. 

5.  Further    observation     and     experiment 

leading  to  its  acceptance  or  rejec- 
tion; that  is,  the  conclusion  of  the 
belief  or  disbelief. 

D.  The  obtaining  of  some  item  or  degree  of  skill  or 
knowledge,  as  learning  to  write  grade  14  on 
the  Thorndike  Scale.  The  procedure  in- 
cludes purposing,  planning,  executing,  and 
judging  from  the  standpoint  of  the  psy- 
chologist. 

IV.  The  evaluation  of  the  project  method  should  be  de- 
termined upon  the  basis  of  achievement  with  regard 
to:  (1)  Acquisition  of  knowledge,  (2)  degree  of  at- 
tainment of  various  kinds  of  skill,  (3)  establishment 
of  habits,  attitudes,  appreciations,  and  ideals. 


V.     Dangers    and    Difficulties    of    the    Project    Method — 
(Frederick  Bonser). 

A.    Dangers: 

1.     Of  Misinterpretation — 

a.  Limiting  the  application  of  the  pro- 
ject method  to  constructive  activ- 
ities, omitting  those  which  are 
primarily  intellectual,  appreciative, 
and  skill  or  habit-forming. 

b.  Assuming  that  all  expressed  inter- 
ests of  children  are  of  equal  worth. 

10 


Projects 

c.      Ignoring  the  significant    values  of 

race  inheritance. 
J.     Exploiting  the  mere  name,  project 

method,  w  ithout  catching  its  spirit. 

or  meaning. 
e.     Selecting    projects    which    are    too 

individualistic    rather    than    those 

requiring  class  co-operation. 
2.     Of  neglect — 

a.  Neglecting  the  needs  for  such  prac- 
tice as  is  necessary  to  de\elop  the 
mechanical  habits  and  skills  of 
the  tool  subjects. 

b.  Leaving  subject-matter  in  isolated 
fragments,  rather  than  as  parts  of 
a  gradually  expanding  organization 
of  thought. 

B.    Difficulties: 

1 .  Utilizing  the  spontaneously  expressed  or 
easily  stimulated  interests  of  children 
as  avenues  of  approach  to  acti\ities  of 
large  educational  worth. 

2.  Seeing  "leads  "  and  following  up  acces- 
sory interests  by  which  projects  may 
be  carried  forward  to  yield  their  maxi- 
mum \  alues. 


11 


MILWAUKEE  PUBLIC  SCHOOLS 

PLAN  FOR  PROJECT  TEACHING 
IN  THE  FIRST  GRADE. 

MARGARET  CANTY,  Assistant  Superintendent. 


I.  Sources  of  Projects: 

A.  The  presence  of  material — clay,  wood,  yarn,  etc. 

B.  En\ironment  containing  articles  of 

1 .  Use— 

a.  For  social  purposes. 

b.  For  play  acti\ities. 

2.  Ornament. 

C.  Need  for  the  objects  or  articles  to  be  made. 

D.  Children's  experience. 

E.  vSocial  imitation — desire  to  imitate  the  work  of 

others. 

F.  Aspects  of  home  and  community  life. 

G.  Timely  incidents  or  natural  phenomena. 
H.    Festi\'al  occasions. 

II.  Procedure: 

A.    Purpose — 

1 .  Child's  purpose. 

2.  Teacher's  purpose  based  upon — 

a.  Children's  native  impulses. 

b.  Children's  stage  of  development. 

c.  Specific  educational  aims  to  be  at- 
tained. 


B.    Plan- 


By  whom  made — 
a.      By  the  children 

(1)  Individually 

(2)  In  groups. 

12 


"Projects" 

2.  Means  to  give  the  ehilJ  clear  ideas 
of  the  essential  features  of  the  object 
to  be  constructed. 

a.  Show  a  model  or  se\eral  different 
models. 

b.  Show    pictures  or  diagrams. 

3.  Selection  of  material 

a.  Determined  bv  the  use  for  which 
the  object  is  intended. 

b.  Determined  by  the  child's  knowl- 
edge of  material  and  by  his  skill  in 
manipulation. 

C.     H.xecution  of  the  plan — 

1.  Overcoming  of  difficulties  which  arise 
as  the  work  progresses. 

a.  By  the  child's  unaided  efforts. 

b.  By  suggestions  made  by  other 
pupils  or  by  the  teacher. 

2.  Improvement   of  the  child's  technique 

a.  By  other  children. 

b.  B\'  the  teacher. 

3.  Establishment  of  higher  standards  of 
achievement. 

a.  By  displaxing  the  best  work  of 
other  pupils. 

b.  By  demonstrations  gi\'en  by  the 
teacher. 


D.    Judging 


I'rom  the  chikls  slani^lpoint. 

a.  Was  the  outcome  successful ■" 

b.  Did  the  object  or  article  fulfill  the 
purpose  for  which  it  was  con- 
structed l* 

1  rom  the  teachers  standpoint- 
Evaluation  of  the   achievement   of  pu- 
pils with  regar^l  to 

a.  Acquisition  of  knowledge. 

b.  Degree  of  attainment  of  various 
kinds  of  skill. 

c.  Establishment  of  habits,  att""  '■- 
appreciations,  and  ideals. 

13 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

POSSIBLE  PROJECTS 

I.      Base  J  on   play  activities: 

A.  Makinij;  of  dolls — rag,  raffia,  paper,  etc. 

B.  Construction  of  a  doll  house  or  a  play  house. 

C.  l\irnishing  a  doll   house  or  a  play  house. 

O.    Making  of  pinwheels,  kites,  balloons,  clay  mar- 
bles,  etc. 

E.    Making  of  soldier  hats  or  caps. 


II.     As  outgrowths  of  the  social  motive: 

A.  Making    simple    holiday    favors    for    parents    or 
friends. 

B.  Making  simple  gifts  for  less  fortunate  children. 

C.  Preparation  for  school  parties. 

D.  Making  simple  decorations  for  home  or  school 
room. 

E.  Observance  of  holidays — 

1.  Trimming  a  Christmas  tree. 

2.  Making  valentines,  Easter  cards,  May 
baskets,  etc. 


II.     Constructive    activities    growing    out    of   school    ex- 
cursions. 

A.     Making  of  bird  houses,  chicken  coops,  etc. 


[V.     Constructive   activities   growing   out   of  a   desire    for 
dramatic  expression. 

A.     Making  simple  costumes.    (See  "Projects  in  the 
the  Primary  Grades,"  p.  36 — Krackowizer). 

14 


"Projects" 
STANDARDS  I-OR  JLDGINC]  SCHOOL  PROJECTS 

W.   W.  THEISIiN,  Assistant  >l  iikintmndecnt. 


A  project  has  been  defined  as  a  wholehearted,  pur- 
poseful acti\ity.  However,  such  a  blanket  definition  docs 
not  assist  the  teacher  to  distinguish  between  projects  suit- 
able for  school  use  and  those  that  are  not.  Under  the  defi- 
nition abo\e  could  be  included  any  wholehearted  acti\ity 
from  swatting  an  annoying  fly  to  winning  the  great  war. 
Obviously,  limitations  must  be  prescribed.  It  is  not  so 
much  a  question  as  to  whether  the  project  methcd  shall  be 
employed  in  teaching  but  what  projects  shall  be  under- 
taken and  under  what  conditions. 


Among  the  projects  which  may  be  undertaken  in  the 
school  there  are  individual  pupil  projects,  class  projects 
and  projects  in  which  the  entire  school  body  may  partici- 
pate, such  as  the  preparation  of  a  comprehensive 
guide  book  to  the  City  of  Milwaukee.  Of  the  projects 
which  may  be  undertaken  some  will  have  large  educative 
value,  others  ordinary  amounts  of  it,  and  others  little  or 
none  at  all.  The  method  of  teaching  by  means  of  a  project 
should  be  selected  in  a  given  case  only  when  its  educative 
value  is  equal  or  superior  to  alternative  methods  that  could 
be  used.  The  teacher  should  be  careful  to  avoid  long 
round-about  methods  of  arriving  at  conclusions  that  could 
be  accomplished  in  one-half  the  time  by  a  more  direct 
method.  A  project  for  school  use  should  meet  the  test  of 
good  teaching,  it  should  tend  to  develop  good  habits  of 
thinking,  produce  valuable  social  qualities  in  the  children 
or  give  them  worthwhile  experiences.  It  should  help  to 
train  them  in  holding  to  specific  and  vital  issues,  exercise 
good  judgment  in  the  selection  of  pertinent  data  bearing 
upon  the  questions  to  be  solved,  and  to  organize  the  materials 
at  hand  into  an  orderly  w  hole.  The  impressions  gained  by 
the  children  must  be  truthful.  The  outcome  should  ap- 
proximate the  conditions  of  real  life  and  afford  correct 
ideas  of  the  principles  or  experiences  we  desire  to  teach 
The  time  devoted  to  the  project  must  be  well  spent,  which 

15 


Miiiraukcc  Public  Schools 

means  that  wH  of  the  children  must  be  profitably  occupied 
for  most  ol  the  lime.  Moreover,  the  actual  thinking  out 
of  the  various  processes,  the  selection  and  organization  of 
materials,  must  be  done  by  the  pupils  themselves.  There 
is  an  ever  present  danger  that  too  much  of  the  work  will 
represent  the  teacher's  thinking  and  that  the  children  will 
become  merely  little  laborers  performing  manual  tasks 
suggested  by  the  teacher. 

Rightly  managed  the  project  method  holds  great  edu- 
cational possibilities,  but  wrongly  managed  it  is  fraught 
with  possibilities  for  poor  teaching. 


16 


REPORT  OF  PROJECTS 


A  MIMIC  THEATRE 

(KINDERGARTEN  AND  ITRSF  CRAi:)E) 
AVIS  McHENRY,  KiNnLiRCARTicN,  Eighth  Street  School 


I.      Purpose  of  the  project: 

A.  The  main  purpose  of  the  project  was  to  give  the 

children  in  the  kindergarten  an  opportunity 
for  dramatic  expression  as  actors  in  the 
"show". 

B.  A  secondary  purpose  was  to  furnish  a  real  situ- 

ation, necessitating  ihc  making  of  change 
in  the  purchase  of  tickets,  as  an  arithmetic 
lesson  for  the  pupils  of  the  I^'irst  Grade  who 
constituted  the  aLKlicnce. 


11.      ncNciopmcnt. 

The  chiklrcn  had  repeatedly  asked  to  ha\e  a  real  show. 
As  we  were  fully  aware  of  the  doubtful  character  of  some  of 
the  cheap  theaters  in  this  section  of  the  city,  we  considered 
very  carefully  the  advisability  of  acceding  to  the  wishes  of 
the  chiklrcn.  However,  as  the  demand  was  so  whole- 
hearted and  insistent,  we  decided  to  develop  the  project. 
The  plan,  for  the  most  part,  was  made  according  to  sugges- 
tions offered  by  the  children.  The  need  for  a  theater,  actors. 
ushers,  costumes,  tickets,  etc.,  became  apparent.  The 
children  were  given  the  choice  of  being  the  actors  or  the 
audience.  About  twelve  children  decided  to  be  actors; 
two  boys  wished  to  be  ushers,  while  a  little  girl  immediatclv 
elected  herself  to  sit  in  the  "glass  bo.\  with  the  hole  in  it." 
The  rest  of  the  children  were  satisfied  to  be  the  audience. 

At  this  stage  of  elcvclopment,  the  kindergarten  room 
was  converted  into  a  theater.  One  child  acted  as  manager. 
The  other  children  arranged   the  tables  and  chairs.      I  he 

17 


Miitraukce  Public  Schools 

curtain  consistCLl  of  some  old  red  tablecloths,  relics  of  by- 
gone LJays.  The  curtain  was  drawn  across  the  door  of  a 
cloak  room,  making  a  suitable  stage  entrance  as  well  as 
screening  the  dressing-room.  Having  completed  our  pre- 
parations, we  announced  to  the  Inrst  Grade  that  the  price 
of  admission  would  be  twenty-five  cents,  plus  one  cent 
war  tax. 

From  this  point  Miss  Murphy,  the  teacher  of  the 
First  Grade,  continued  the  development  of  the  project. 
Upon  the  suggestion  of  one  of  the  pupils,  toy  money  was 
made  of  cardboard.  The  children  cut  out  nickels  and 
pennies,  and  colored  them  with  crayons  to  resemble  real 
coins.  The  value  of  the  coins  was  then  discussed.  To 
purchase  a  ticket,  each  child  needed  five  nickels  and  one 
cent.  When  the  time  came  to  purchase  the  tickets,  many 
of  the  children  were  sorely  puzzled  in  counting  out  the 
correct  amount.  The  ushers  gave  evidence  of  their  famili- 
arity with  the  duties  of  real  ushers  in  the  efficient  manner 
in  which  they  seated  the  audience.  The  program  consisted 
of  kindergarten  songs  and  dances,  of  acrobatic  stunts,  and 
of  the  antics  of  a  band  of  clowns.  The  beaming  faces 
of  the  audience  showed  keen  appreciation.  As  a  means 
of  developing  initiative  and  social  co-operation,  not  to 
mention  valuable  training  in  language  and  arithmetic, 
the  project  was  worth  the  effort  required. 


THE  THREE  BEARS 

M.ARY  /\.  MURPHY,  First  Grade,  Eighth  Street  School. 


One  day  the  children  asked  for  a  story.  In  response 
to  their  request,  the  teacher  told  the  story  of  "The  Three 
Bears,"  which  is  of  perennial  interest  to  children.  On  the 
next  day.  the  children  retoLI  the  stor\',  and  on  the  da\-  fol- 
lowing they  dramatized   it. 

During  the  week,  they  made  free-hand  cuttings  from 
black-coated  paper  to  illustrate  the  story  in  silhouette. 
Some  of  the  first  pictures  which  the  children  cut  were  not 
good,  so  the  teacher  cut  a  number  of  silhouettes  to  raise 
the  standard  of  achievement  of  the  children.  They  then 
recut  the  poor  parts  an^l  were  pleased  with  the  impro\e- 

18 


"Projects" 

ment.  The  chiLlrcn  then  made  booklets  in  which  they 
assembled  the  pictures  in  proper  sequence  (of  the  events 
of  the  story). 

The  project,  which  continucLl  a  week,  secured  the 
chiklren's  activity  through  interest.  IVom  the  standpoint 
of  the  curriculum,  it  afforLlcd  language  instruction  through 
the  telling  and  the  dramatization  of  the  story.  Manual 
training  was  provided  for  through  paper  cutting,  pasting, 
and  the  making  of  booklets.  In  making  the  booklets, 
three  bears,  three  beds,  three  chairs,  and  three  bowls  were 
needed.  This  exercise  afforded  practical  application  of 
counting.  As  a  result  of  the  children's  desire  to  read  the 
story,  many  easy  picture  books  were  read. 


A  BUILDING  BLOCK  PROJECT 

■H.'\NNAl  I  MARKS,  First  Gradf-;,  Lloyd  Stri-f.t  School. 


The  pupils  of  Grade  1-B  one  morning  found  a  house 
in  I  heir  room,  made  of  the  L.eicligh  blocks,  with  movable 
shutters  and  door,  furnished  with  chairs  and  tables,  ani-l 
nearby  a  case  containing  blocks,  pegs  ant.!  tools.  Ihe 
teacher  did  not  expect  that  the  children  woukl  immediately 
engage  in  a  constructive  project,  but  rather  in  one  of  en- 
joyment. They  became  engrossed  in  opening  and  closing 
windows  and  door,  climbing  in  and  out  of  windows  and 
upon  the  house.  This  met  with  objections  from  some  of 
the  children  and  led  to  a  discussicMT  on  liu'  i^ropcr  care  an^^l 
use  of  the  blocks. 

k'or  several  lImns  ihc\'  pla\cd  house  with  father,  mother 
and  chiklren,  and  they  became  acciuainte*.!  with  \arious 
types  of  famil\-  life.  One  day  they  removed  the  lurniture 
anel  played  elevator,  insisting  on  "safety  first  "  ani.1  courtesy. 
1  lowever,  the  teacher  had  arranged  the  en\ironment  so 
that  it  might  be  conducixe  to  the  selection  of  some  build- 
ing activity  by  the  children  in  which  they  might  spon- 
taneously desire  to  engage  when  curiosity  and  constriictive- 
ncss  manifested  thcmscKes.  \'er\'  soon  thc\'  began  to 
investigate  how  things  were  made.  The  ehimne\  was 
removed  and  taken  apart.  It  is  the  simplest  problem  and 
contains  the  basic  principles  of  buikling  with  these  blocks. 

19 


Miiiixiukce   Public  Schoois 

C^himncys  of  various  sizes  were  constructed  without  di- 
rections' from  the  teacher.  They  pegged  the  blocks  to- 
gether and  pulled  them  apart  until  they  learned  how  to 
build  chimneys.  It  was  interest  and  desire  that  led  them 
to  purpose  this  simplest  activity,  to  allow  no  obstacle 
to  discourage  them,  but  to  strive  on  to  success. 

After  several  unsuccessful  attempts,  one  boy  produced 
asatisfactorv    chair.     Others    of    various    sizes    followed. 


BUILDING    BLOCK   PROJECT 
First  Grade — Lloyd   Street  School 

The  tiny  chairs  occasioned  much  joy  and  the  outburst, 
"Those  are  wee  little  ones!"  This  suggested  the  chairs  of 
"The  Three  Bears".  The  children  chose  the  three  best 
ones  of  the  story  sizes.  The  selection  afforded  splendid 
opportunity  for  criticism  of  each  other  s  work.  The  criti- 
cisms were  given  and  accepted  in  a  delightful  and  helpful 
spirit  and  the  value  of  securing  criticism  was  stressed. 
Those  whose  chairs  were  not  well  constructed  were  anxious 
to  reconstruct  and  produce  better  results.  By  this  tim.e 
quite  a  degree  of  skill  in  the  manipulation  of  the  material 
had  been  acquired.  The  children  had  been  ready  and 
an.xious  to  use  the  blocks.     Their  purpose  had  been  to  find 

20 


"  Prcjects" 

out  how  to  use  them.  They  had  ohtainc^l  success  and 
satisfaction,  They  ha^l  learned  the  funLlamenials  of  build- 
ing with  this  set  of  blocks. 

As  the  material  thus  became  pliable  in  their  hands, 
the  mechanism  required  little  mental  effort  and  their 
thoughts  were  left  free  to  move  in  the  direction  of  initia- 
tion of  some  acti\it\-  in  which  they  might  apply  the  skill 
which  they  had  with  satisfaction  aee|uired.  I'oreseeing 
this  state  of  readiness,  the  teacher  had  refrained  from  sug- 
gestions. She  felt  that  when  a  spontaneous  desire  did 
come  from  the  children,  the  purposive  set  would  be  stronger 
and  the  activity  would  move  with  greater  vigor. 

Teddy  bears  of  all  sizes  were  brought  to  school  and 
appropriate  ones  placed  in  the  chairs.  While  they  were 
plaxing,  one  little  girl  said,  "We  ought  to  ha\e  the  other 
things  so  we  can  play  the  whole  story".  This  met  with 
hearty  approbation  and  was  the  real  beginning  of  the  pro- 
ject of  "The  Three  Bears".  The  children  decided  to  unbuild 
the  house  and  use  the  materials.  No  wrecking  company 
ever  had  such  hustlers.  Some  pulled  the  blocks  apart, 
some  remoNcd  pegs,  some  carried  the  blocks  to  others  who 
sorted  the  various  lengths  and  piled  them  into  the  case 
provided  for  storing.  This  was  excellent  practice  in  co- 
operation. It  illustrated  to  them  how  in  a  short  time, 
through  their  united  efforts,  the  material  was  ready  to 
carr\-  out  their  plans  for  the  next  da\"s  work. 

Beds  of  several  sizes  were  now  construele(.l.  but  with- 
out any  provision  for  holding  bedding.  ThcN'  experimente*.! 
by  pushing  blocks  across  from  side  to  sicle  and  i.liseo\ered 
that  these  slipped  out  when  the  bed  was  mo\ed.  They 
pegged  them  together  but  this  did  not  look  like  slats. 
(\ibes  were  then  used  between  the  slat  ends  and  a  good, 
("irm  effect  obtained,  but  the  bed  had  to  be  taken  apart 
to  insert  this.  Quite  a  few^  beds  were  constructed  before 
it  was  remembered  to  make  the  slats  before  completing 
the  top  of  the  btd.  Many  tim.es  there  was  too  large  an 
opening  where  the  i^illow  belongs  and  the  head  end  had  to 
be  reconstructed.  Two  perio(.ls  were  spent  in  making  the 
table  top.  but  each  titre  that  it  was  lifted  it  came  apart. 
Since  no  helpful  suggestion  was  forthcoming,  the  teacher 
askei-l,  "  1  low  are  other  tables  made'"  This  caused  an 
inspection  of  the  various  tables  in  the  room.     Two  blocks 


M iitraukee   Public  Schools 

of  the  dcsiretl  tabic  width  in  length  were  selected  and  used 
for  supports,   one  at  each  end,   upon   which   to   fasten   the 

top.      1 1    was  then   turned   upsitlc  down  and  the  legs  were 
built    Li|"iwari.l. 

The  house  was  now  set  in  order  with  the  bears  at  the 
tabic.  The  wee  little  bear's  chair  was  too  low  and  so  high 
chairs  were  built.  The  necessity  for  bowls  to  complete 
the  story  became  apparent.  A  modeling  lesson  followed 
with  the  story  of  how  bowls  are  made.  When  the  photo- 
grapher came  to  take  the  picture,  the  children  suggested 
naming  it.  This  necessitated  finding  the  title  in  a  book 
and  they  learned  the  words  "THREE"  and  "BEARS" 
in  capitals.  ABC  blocks  were  used  to  construct  the  title. 
Goldilocks  tried  the  beds  and  found  they  were  all  hard  as 
they  were  undressed.  This  led  to  the  planning  of  pillows, 
quilts,   etc. 

In  the  realization  of  the  accomplishment  of  the  original 
project,  the  children  had  not  only  acquired  skill  in  the 
manipulation  of  the  material,  but  also  that  which  is  of 
greater  educational  value,  a  group  of  new  interests.  They 
had  found  the  title  in  a  book;  this  led  to  a  desire  to  read 
the  story.  They  had  learned  to  model  with  clay;  this  led 
to  a  desire  to  color  the  bowls.  They  had  begun  to  sew; 
this  led  to  a  desire  to  clothe  the  bears.  Each  of  these 
activities  has  within  it  possibilities  of  leading  on  to  endless 
opportunities  for  unfolding  and  growth.  The  attitudes 
of  working  accurately,  of  doing  the  thing  right  the  first 
time,  were  acquired,  as  well  as  a  certain  self-confidence 
and  pride  which  accompanies  the  successful  fulfillment  of 
an  undertaking. 

The  project  afforded  man>-  opportunities  for  moral 
education.  The  caution  and  consideration  with  which  the 
long  blocks  had  to  be  handled  in  the  crowded  room,  the 
helpfulness  and  co-operation,  the  unselfishness  in  the  use 
of  material,  the  settling  of  disagreements  by  the  children 
through  the  teacher's  guidance  to  the  satisfaction  of  all 
concerned,  the  determination  to  achieve  success,  the  joy 
and  satisfaction  resulting  therefrom,  afforded  practice  in 
character  formation.  These  are  the  conditions  under 
which  attitudes  toward  work  and  ideals  of  conduct  are 
created;  they  are  the  practical  embodiment  of  meeting 
real  life  situations. 

22 


'^  Projects" 

DOLL  PROJECT 

BIIRI'IIA    iKAF^P,  Gkadi:  1-B,   ["wtNTY-riFTii  Avenue  School. 


The  subject  of  Jolls  was  sufrgcsted  hy  the  stor\'  of 
Ragf^ecly  Ann  which  the  teacher  read  to  the  children. 
The  story  was  keenh'  enjoyed  by  the  children  and  each 
little  girl  was  anxious  to  have  a  doll  of  her  own.  .After  a 
discussion  of  available  materials,  it  was  decided  to  use  a 
clean  stocking.  In  order  to  teach  economy,  the  teacher 

suggested  that  an  old  stocking  could  be  used  by  cutting 
away  the  worn  parts.  Each  girl  brought  an  old  white, 
black  or  brown  stocking  and  needle  and  thread.  The 
teacher  cut  a  pattern  from  one  of  the  stockings.  After  all 
of  the  dolls  had  been  cut  out,  the  children  sewed  them, 
leaving  an  opening  at  the  top  for  the  filling  which  consisted 
of  cotton  or  old  cloth  cut  into  shreds.  y\fter  the  top  had 
been  sewci.!  up,  a  thread  was  tied  around  the  upper  part 
to  form  a  heat.!.  The  arms  were  then  sewed,  stuffed,  and 
joined  to  the  body.  For  the  negro  dolls,  a  realistic  effect 
was  produced  by  using  black  shoe  buttons  for  the  eyes, 
black  yarn  for  the  hair,  and  red  marking  cotton  for  the  lips. 
In  contrast  with  the  black'  lIoIIs,  the  white  dolls  ha^.1  rosy 
cheeks  produced  by  an  application  of  water  color  paint. 
The  perplexing  problem  of  dress  was  sohed  by  making 
Mother  Hubbard  dresses  from  remnants  of  gingham.  .After 
the  girls  had  completed  their  dolls,  the  boys  became  inter- 
ested an^l  made  Black  Sambo,  dolls.  Most  of  the  dolls 
were  finished  before  Christmas,  and,  although  they  were 
crude,  they  were  greatly  prized  by  the  children.  The 
interest  in  dolls  was  carried  o\-cr  into  the  Christmas  pro- 
gram, which  provi^kxl  for  a  number  of  short  recitations 
about  dolls  and  also  a  playlet  entitled  "Playing  Mothers' 
Meeting"  ("Primary  Plans".  June,  1907).  During  music 
pcrioels,   I  he   following  songs  were  learned: 

A    Link-    l.ad\-      Progressive    Music    Series,    Book 

One,    p.    13. 

L^olKs   Lullaby,    Progressi\e   Music   Series,    Book 

One,    p.    17. 

Dolly's  Lullaby.  Primary  Plans.  June.   L^()7. 
23 


Miiivaukee   Public  Schools 

The  project  furnished  easy  material  for  blackboard 
lessons  in  reading.  It  provided,  also,  a  suitable  motive 
for  drilling  the  proper  name  cards,  inasmuch  as  each  doll 
was  given  one  of  the  names.  It  also  served  as  an  excellent 
preparation  for  a  number  of  lessons  from  reading  books, 
such  as — 

Baldwin  and  Bender,  First  Reader,  pages  22,  23, 
26,   27;  and 

Wide  Awake  Primer,  pages  8,   15,  26,  27,  78,  79. 


A  BIRTHDAY  PARTY 

SARAl  I  M.  MALONEY,  First  Grade  ■■B,"   Third  Street  School. 


I.     Aims: 


A.  To  acquaint  the  children   \\ith  the  use  of  the 

calendar. 

B.  To    correlate    the    subjects    of    number    work, 

language,   and  hygiene. 

C.  To  teach  courtesy  and  social  usages. 

D.  To  provide  opportunity  for  social  co-operation. 

Outline: 

A.  Marking  the  children's  birthdays  on  the  calen- 

dar in   the  school   room. 

B.  Counting: 

1.  Children  whose  birthdays  were  recorded 

during  the  month. 

2.  Age  of  different  children  in  years. 

3.  Days  in  a  week. 

4.  Weeks  in  a  month. 

5.  Days  in  a  month. 

C.  Children's  obser\ation  of  weather: 

1.  In   March  there  are  high  winds. 

2.  Soft   rains   fall   in  April. 


"Projects" 

!II.     De\elopment : 

Ruth  Brown,  a  little  girl  w  hose  birthday  w  as  recorded 
during  the  month  of  March,  suggested  having  a 
birthday  party.  This  social  motive  dominated 
the  school  activities  for  the  month.  The  chil- 
dren received  the  suggestion  with  enthusiasm, 
Joyously  anticipating  the  cake  promised  by 
Ruth's  mother.  School  interests  and  home  ac- 
ti\ities  had  accordingly  a  point  of  contact. 

A  note  in  response  to  Mrs.  Brown's  kindne.'^s  required 
the  co-operation  of  all  the  children.  The  sending  of  the 
note  to  the  proper  street  and  number  introduced  \aluable 
language  work,  inasmuch  as  all  of  the  children  were  gi\en 
the  opportunity  of  telling  where  they  li\ed.  [^reparation 
lor  the  party  necessitated  the  setting  of  the  kindergarten 
table  by  the  children,  covers  being  laid  for  six,  namel\\ 
Ruth  and  her  five  little  friends.  This  required  the  counting 
of  paper  dishes  and  paper  napkins.  An  additional  oppor- 
tunity for  counting  w  as  afforded  by  determining  the  number 
of  children  in  the  room,  as  all  w  ere  invited  to  the  party. 

The  table  for  Ruth  was  prettily  decorated.  The  nap- 
kins were  folded  so  as  to  display  a  spray  of  apple  blossoms. 
The  center  of  attraction,  however,  was  the  birthday  cake, 
ornamcnteci  with  si.x  tiny  pink  candles  placed  in  holders 
around  the  edge.  Each  candle  represented  a  year  of 
Ruth's  life.  The  candles  were  blown  out  by  the  little 
guests,  who  congratulated  Ruth  upon  this  joyful  occasion 
and  wished  her  many  happy  returns  of  the  day. 

Each  child  was  scr\ed  with  a  slice  of  cake  and  some 
animal  crackers  placed  on  a  clean  paper  napkin.  .An 
opportunity  was  thereby  afforded  for  training  in  proper 
habits  of  hygiene  and  good  manners  at  table.  True  courtesy, 
thoughtfulncss  for  others,  is  \  ital  to  a  happy  atmosphere. 
The  children  memorized  the  following  stanza  by  Robert 
Louis  Stevenson: 

A  child  should  always  say   what's  true. 
And  speak  when  he  is  spoken  to, 
And  behave  mannerly  at  table — 
At  least  as  far  as  he  is  able. 

The  chiLlrcn  bcha\cd  their  \ery  best  and  were  enthusi- 
astic about  the  parts,  especially  about  the  chocolate  cake. 

25 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

The  spirit  of  pleasure  engendered  by  the  party  was  not 
diminished  when  the  children  were  introduced  to  a  more 
formal  aspect  of  learning.  Counting  had  been  learned 
incidentally  because  of  the  demand  of  the  situation.  The 
learning  of  the  word  "party"  was  accomplished  by  means  of 
a  game  called  "Hide  the  Thimble".  A  card  with  the 
printed  word  "party"  was  hidden.  The  children  clapped 
hands  softly  or  loudly  as  the  child  w  ho  was  hunting  for  the 
card  approached  or  receded  from  the  hiding  place.  Livery 
child  participated   in  the  game. 

For  many  days  following,  free  conversation  between 
the  children  and  the  teacher  about  various  incidents  of  the 
party  proved  a  valuable  aid  in  language  teaching.  The 
experience  of  the  party  prepared  the  children  for  a  keener 
appreciation  of  the  following  stories  which  w'ere  later  read 
to  the  children: 

1.  Little   Blessed   Eyes,   or   The   Fairies"    Birthday 

Gift,  Elizabeth  Harrison. 

2.  The  Birthday  Present,  Maud  Lindsay. 

3.  Dickey  Smiley's  Birthday,  Kate  Douglas  Wiggin. 


THE  PICNIC 

JENNIR  M.  BALLANTINE,  First  Grade  "B,"  Cass  Street  School 


Forty  pairs  of  bright  eyes  danced  and  beamed. 
The  dark  eyes  and  darker  hair  bespoke  an  ancestry 
from  another  clime.  Surely  there  was  some  link  with 
which  to  join  their  happy  play  life  at  homic  in  an 
almost  foreign  atmosphere  to  the  thoughts  and  activities 
of  an  American  schoolroom.  It  soon  developed  that 
"  What  they  liked  to  do  best  of  all"  was  to  take  a  lunch  and 
go  to  a  park.  At  last  we  had  found  out  what  was  really 
very  near  to  each  childish  heart — "A  Picnic."  As  it  was 
too  cold  for  a  real  one,  a  make-belie\e  one  was  the  next 
best  thing. 

Naturally  the  first  thoughts  were  "  Where.  "  Language 
periods  were  busy  times  those  days.  Here  their  imagination 
lound  vent  in  picturing  a  picnic  at  various  parks  and  in 
deciding  which  park  they  would  choose.      Washington  Park 


"Projects" 

with  its  miniature  lake  and  its  wonJerfLil  "zoo"  won  by  a 
large  majority. 

Then  there  followed  talks  about  the  animals  in  Washing- 
ton Park.  The  elephants,  lions,  tigers,  and  giraffes  on  our 
w  indow  curtains  became  doubly  interesting.  (The  curtains 
were  of  w hite  tissue  paper  on  w  hich  animal  cutouts  had  been 
pasted.)  So  also  were  the  cutouts  of  ducks,  geese,  turkeys, 
rabbits,  squirrels,  etc.,  in  the  border  on  the  top  of  the 
blackboard.  It  was  great  fun  in  the  number  work  period 
to  find  out  how  many  birds  or  beasts  there  were  of  each 
kind,  how  many  feet  some  had,  how  many  were  standing 
in  a  certain  row ,  how  many  there  were  of  one  color  and  how 
many  had  wings,  etc. 

As  all  picnics  must  ha\e  a  lunch  prepared,  it  was  time 
now  to  consider  what  to  take.  Here  was  a  chance  to  make 
a  plea  for  wholesome  food.  It  was  a  good  chance,  too,  to 
give  a  drill  in  correct  English,  and  when  the  question  was 
asked,  "Who  is  it  that  likes  ice  cream \"  they  whole-heart- 
edly responded,  "It  is  I."  Before  the  whole  menu  was  set- 
tled, many  opportunities  arose  for  drill  on  the  expression 
"It  is   I". 

Having  decided  that  we  must  have  fruit  for  the  picnic, 
we  made  clay  apples,  oranges,  pears,  bananas,  and 
strawberries  during  the  manual  training  time.  W  hen 
these  were  painted,  they  looked  very  tempting,  indeed. 
Brown  and  white  bread  sandwiches  were  represented  by- 
some  co\er  paper,  cut  into  the  requisite  shape.  Of  course, 
some  things,  such  as  ice  cream,  milk,  water,  etc..  had  to  be 
left  to  the  imagination.  These  were  all  symbolized,  how- 
c\cr,  by  the  dishes  which  we  used.  We  had  procured  at 
vcr\-  little  expense,  paper  serxice  plates,  ice  cream  dishes. 
water  or  milk  cups,  table  napkins,  a  tablecloth,  and  some 
small   kni\cs,    forks  and  spoons. 

Packing  the  lunch  boxes  was  left  to  the  number  work 
pcricKl.  liach  group  of  children  had  to  be  supplied  with 
the  proper  refreshments  and  dishes.  There  was  a  great 
deal  of  pleasure  and  a  splendid  drill  in  counting  objects 
before  the  many  busy  little  helpers  were  sure  that  the  lunch 
box  for  each  group  contained  the  correct  number  of  article-^ 
of  each   kind. 

At  last  came  the  picnic  itself,  and  we  prepared  for  a  pre- 
tended car  ride.      W  c  talked  of  the  cost  of  the  ride    to  the 

27 


M ilwaukee  Public  Schools 


THE   PICNIC 
First  Grade — Cass  Street  School 

park  and  back.  Each  child  took  from  his  number  box  the 
necessary  pennies  (colored  counters)  and  went,  walking  to  the 
car  around  the  outer  aisles  of  the  room.  Each  row  of  seats 
was  a  street  car,  and  for  each  car  there  was  a  conductor, 
who  insisted  on  the  proper  fare  for  the  round  trip  w  hich 
the  children  paid  before  taking  places  in  the  cars. 

When  wc  reached  the  park,  we  set  out  to  enjoy  our- 
selves before  lunch  time.  \\'e  all  went  for  a  boat  ride.  It 
mattered  little  that  it  was  the  period  for  organized  play 
and  that  the  top  of  the  desk  was  the  boat,  while  the  oars 
were  imaginary.  We  exercised  and  rowed  our  boats  all 
around  the  pond  and  on  landing,  took  our  nmake-believe 
skipping  ropes  and  skipped  up  and  down  the  paths  (the 
aisles).  Here  was  our  theme  for  illustratixe  work  in  draw- 
ing, and,  during  the  manual  training  period,  we  folded  and 
cut  straw-board  to  represent  the  benches  in  the  park. 
The  skipping  had  made  us  think  of  a  song  we  had  just 
learned  about  "Our  Holiday'  ,  in  which  we  skipped  and 
went  roller  skating.  During  the  music  period,  we  sang  our 
holiday  song  and  gave  the  calls  of  the  birds  we  knew  and 
which  wc  were  sure  must   be   lixin"  in  Washiniiton  Park. 


28 


"Projects" 

Several  mounted  pictures  of  the  birds  were  placed  about 
the   room   and    were   used   during   language   period    in   our 

talks  on  birds. 

However,  to  a  child  mind  the  center  of  interest  in  a 
picnic  is  never  very  far  from  the  lunch  basket.  So,  it  was 
hard  to  wait  till  we  spread  the  tablecloth  and  began  to  set 
the  tabic.  Merc  again  was  a  lesson  in  number  work. 
The  children  set  the  tabic,  carefully  counting  out  the  re- 
quired numl^er  of  articles  of  each  kind.  But  counting  was 
not  the  only  lesson  learned.  Many  of  these  little  chil^lrcn 
had,  probably,  never  seen  a  table  so  set  for  a  meal  and  cer- 
tainly had  never  learned  how  to  do  it.  To  such  it  was  a 
lesson   in  Americanization  as  well. 

Thus  our  picnic  extended  through  many  lessons  and, 
although  it  was  especially  intended  for  practical  work  in  num- 
bers, it  included  many  other  subjects  such  as  language,  music, 
manual  training,  drawing,  calisthenics,  dietetics,  nature 
study  an^l  .Americanization.  It  repeatedly  calleci  for  use 
of  imagination  and  brought  into  play  a  social  co-operative 
spirit.  Last,  but  by  no  means  least,  it  gave  a  great  deal 
of  pleasure  to  each  of  us. 


EASTER  IN  A  PRIMARY  ROOM 

NOI-^.A   Bl  SS,   r-'i  K.ST  (;r  AIM  .  \\  Ai  Ki  R  Si  Ki  1,1  Sciinoi 


The  weeks  preceding  Easter  can  be  made  \'crv  inter- 
esting in  a  primary  room  by  correlating  the  l-!aster  thought 
with  the  ^liffcrent  acti\ities  of  the  day.  Liaster  suggests 
to  the  chiklren  nests,  baskets  of  colored  eggs,  (lowers. 
fascinating  rabbits,  chickens  and  i^lucks.  Intertwined  with 
this,  is  the  thought  of  the  awakening  of  life.  The  birds 
are  returning  from  the  South,  and  enli\ening  the  woods 
w  ith  their  bursts  of  song  ani.1  bits  of  color.  The  buds  arc 
unfolding  on  the  trees,  the  flowers  arc  springing  up,  and 
e\-cr\'whcrc  there  is  c\ii.lence  of  the  return  of  life. 

1  he  schoolroom  can  be  made  l^right  aiul  atiracti\c  by 
bringing  in  potted  plants  of  the  spring  (lowers,  tulips, 
dafl'cKlils,  etc       Little  chickens  or  rabbits,  cut  from  Lennison 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

paper  and  mounted,  make  attractive  borders.  Stuffed 
birds  can  be  secured  from  the  museum  and  placed  about 
the  room,  to  be  studied  by  the  children.  In  one  corner 
of  the  room,  a  nest  can  be  made,  and  in  it  placed  little  candy 
eggs  and  yellow  chicks.  Rabbits  in  different  positions  are 
a  delight  to  the  children,  and  make  fine  models  for  drawing 
and  paper  cutting. 

The  Dcnnison  paper  furnishes  well-colored  spring 
flowers,  also  rabbits,  chickens,  birds,  etc.,  which  can  be  cut 
out,  mounted  and  used  in  various  ways.  Very  natural- 
looking  hens,  chickens,  ducks,  etc.,  can  often  be  found  in 
nursery-room  wallpaper  borders. 

The  following  is  an  outline  of  the  work  as  presented 
in  a  primary  room: 


LANGUAGE: 

Stories  to  be  read  or  told  to  the  children.  Some  can 
be  dramatized.  These  are  suggestive.  Others  may  be 
added. 

"Little  Red  Hen"  "Bunny  Cotton-Tail" 

"Chicken  Little"  "Peter  Rabbit" 

"Little  Half  Chick" 

"The  Three  Rabbits"  (Stories  and  Rhymes  for  a  Child, 
by  Carolyn  Bailey). 


MUSIC: 

Bird  Calls  "Pussy  Willow" 

"The  Bunny"  "Rabbit  in  the  Hollow" 

"Humpty  Dumpty"  "The  Robin"  and  other  bird 
"Tulip"  and  other  songs, 

flower  songs. 

"Church  Bells"   (change  "Sabbath  Day"  to  "Easter 
Day"). 

NUMBER  WORK: 

Count  the  eggs  in  the  nests.     Count  the  chickens  and 
rabbits  about  the  room.     Teach  dozen  and  half  dozen. 

30 


"Projects 
READING: 


New  words  to  b 

e  learned: 

chicken 
bird 

nest 

basket 

white 

egg 

rabbit 

red 

hen 

(lower 

yellow 

blue 

brow  n 

orange 

green 

Read  the  story  "The  Nest",  page  50,  in  the  Baldwin 
&  Bender  First  Reader. 

WRITING: 

Interest  is  added  to  the  making  of  o\als  by  using  ovals 
for  eggs  in  nests.     Count  eight   for  each  o\al. 

DRAW  ING  AND  MANUAL  TRAINING: 

Children  may  bring  real  eggs  to  school  and  paint  them 
with  water  colors.  They  may  make  Easter  baskets  and 
hide  them  about  the  room  and  "the  Easter  rabbit  will 
fill   them   with  candy  eggs  ". 

Accompanying  this  report  is  a  booklet  showing  the 
paper  cutting,  drawing,  etc.,  that  may  be  done  in  the  draw- 
ing periods. 

GROCERY  STORE 

K.\  i  1  ILYN  M.  FUREY,  First  Graim;,  W  ai  ki;r  StRiacT  School 


The  grocery  store  as  a  project  is  \ery  interesting  and 
profitable  because  it  can  readily  be  associated  with  the 
childs  every-day  life  and  because  it  easily  lends  itself  to 
correlation  with  the  \arious  subjects  in  the  school  cur- 
riculum. 

Our  project  began  in  a  \ery  simple  way.  C^ne  day  I 
received  a  package  of  empty  salt  cartons.  1  showed  them 
to  my  little  first  graders  and  they  folded  them  into  shape. 
Before  they  had  gone  far,  someone  discovered  the  word 
"salt"  on  the  bo.\  and  this  led  to  a  discussion.  As  soon  as 
the  boxes  were  finished,  I  asked  where  salt  came  from  ancj 
immediately  recci\cd  the  answer,  "{-"rom  the  grocery  store." 

31 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

Beyond  this  none  of  them  could  go.  We  began  the  study 
of  salt  and  in  a  very  simple  manner  traced  it  from  the  wells 
to  the  grocery  store.  The  children  were  very  much  inter- 
ested, and  when  we  discussed  the  uses  of  this  valuable 
condiment,  most  of  the  pupils  had  had  home  experiences 
which  they  were  eager  to  tell  about. 

1  he  next  morning  the  children  came  to  school  more 
interested  than  ever.  They  had  told  their  new  story  at 
home  and  had  gained  more  information  which  they  were 
very  anxious  to  give.  After  a  time,  one  of  the  boys  asked 
if  we  could  not  play  store  with  our  boxes.  We  did  so  for 
a  little  while,  but  the  limitations  of  the  store  were  soon 
noticed  and  we  decided  that  there  must  be  more  things  to 
sell. 

For  the  next  week  empty  boxes,  cans,  bottles  and 
packages  of  all  kinds  poured  in.  One  day  a  mother  came 
to  find  out  what  was  going  on,  for  she  said  her  little  boy 
insisted  on  bringing  all  their  milk  and  catsup  bottles  to 
school. 

When  I  found  that  a  grocery  store  was  in  progress,  I 
wrote  to  the  Educational  Foundations  Company,  '"Model 
Store"  Department,  19-27  Flatbush  Avenue,  New  York. 
From  time  to  time,  we  received  empty  cartons  from  members 
of  this  company,  and  as  each  package  came  we  learned  the 
story  of  the  product  that  it  represented.  The  children, 
however,  were  not  old  enough  to  appreciate  this  service 
and  on  the  whole,  they  liked  their  own  collection  better. 

From  a  nearby  bookstore  I  procured  a  set  of  shelves. 
This  was  fastened  in  one  corner  of  the  room,  and  no  real 
grocery  store  was  ever  started  with  more  enthusiasm  and 
seriousness.  We  co\ered  the  shelves  with  paper  and  then 
assorted  our  "stock."  The  open  ends  of  the  boxes  had  to 
be  pasted  and  the  cans  made  as  new-looking  as  possible. 
Bars  of  soap  w^ere  made  from  paper  to  fill  the  empty  wrap- 
pers, and  the  bottles  were  filled  with  water  to  which  a  little 
paint  had  been  added  to  give  the  right  color.  It  took 
several  days  to  get  our  goods  ready  and  arranged  on  the 
shehes. 

One  of  the  children  brought  a  little  set  of  telephones 
which  could  really  be  used  and  these  were  the  source  of 
great  enjoyment.  One  box  was  fastened  in  the  back  of  the 
room,  and  the  other,  connected  by  a  cord,  was  put  up  in 

32 


"Projects" 

the  store.     A  bell  was  on  the  side  of  each  box,  so  orders 
could  easily  be  telephoned. 

When  the  goods  had  been  arranged  on  the  shelves,  we 
placed  two  kindergarten  tables  at  right  angles  for  counters. 
On  one  of  these,  we  had  a  pair  of  scales,  a  coffee  mill,  and  a 
desk  telephone,  h^rom  a  (lour  salesman  I  received  an 
apron  and  a  cap,  and,  when  a  little  boy  was  dressed  in  these, 
the  store  and  its  keeper  were  ready  for  the  eager  customers. 

Shortly  after  they  began  playing,  the  need  for  money 
was  felt,  so  they  made  some  by  tracing  around  the  real 
money  on  cardboard  and  marking  the  denomination  on 
it.  They  made  pennies,  nickels,  dimes,  and  quarters. 
Pocketbooks  were  then  found  necessary,  so  these,  also, 
were  made.  Several  pocketbooks  were  placed  on  the  table 
to  furnish  suggestions  and  each  child  made  his  own  any  size 
or  shape  he  desired,  without  direction.  The  only  test  was 
that  it  must  carry  the  money  safcK'. 

New  needs  were  constantly  felt,  and  supplying  these 
kept  the  children  busy.  Baskets  and  shopping  bags  were 
suggested  and  made,  as  well  as  actual  things  to  be  sold  in 
the  store — clay  cakes,  cookies,  bread,  and  many  other 
things. 

The  booklets  which  the  children  made  seemed  to  appeal 
to  them  more  than  anything  else,  brom  adxcrtisemcnts  in 
papers  and  magazines  they  cut  pictures  of  things  found  in 
grocery  stores.  On  the  first  day  pictures  of  all  kinds  were 
brought — shoes,  stoves,  furniture,  houses,  etc.,  but  as  each 
child  exhibited  his  collection,  the  class  judged  it  and,  by 
the  time  this  was  finished,  some  had  very  few  left.  After 
this  experience,  they  knew  just  what  to  look  for,  so  they 
had  no  more  trouble  .  liach  child  kept  his  own  collection 
in  an  envelope  in  his  desk  until  he  had  enough  for  his  booklet. 
Then  he  assorted  the  pictures,  keeping  all  the  cannc^l  goods 
together,  the  soaps,  the  packages,  etc.,  an*.!  pasted  them  on 
sheets  of  paper.  A  cover  being  added,  the  sheets  were  tied 
together  and  taken  home  with  much  satisfaction. 

During  the  course  of  events  a  number  of  interesting 
problems  presented  themselves.  One  day  a  little  girl  tele- 
phoned to  the  store  and  ordered  some  cherry  pics.  The 
storekeeper  told  her  that  he  had  none,  but  she  insisted  on 
having  her  order  filled.  One  of  the  children  at  once  sug- 
gested making  pies.     Some  paper,  the  scissors,  the  paste. 

33 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

some  paper  pie  plates  and  a  box  of  wooden  beads  were 
brought  out.  Several  of  the  children  set  to  work.  The 
first  pie  finished  consisted  of  the  plate  with  a  piece  of  paper 
cut  to  fit  and  pasted  around  the  edge.  I  showed  this  to 
the  class  and  asked  if  they  would  buy  an  empty  pie  like 
this  one.  For  a  moment  they  seemed  puzzled,  but  then 
the  beads  were  discovered  and  the  bakers  hastened  to  fill 
their  pans  with  beads.  The  next  pie  brought  up  had  the 
filling  and  the  top,  but  no  lower  crust.  This  was  discussed 
and  rejected.  Finally,  some  very  good  pies  were  brought 
to  the  storekeeper  and  he  accepted  them,  after  examining 
each  one  to  see  if  it  had  two  crusts  and  a  filling. 

When  the  interest  began  to  lag,  we  introduced  new 
features.  After  the  Pure  Food  Show  many  samples  were 
brought  in,  so  one  day  we  put  a  demonstrator  to  work. 
One  of  the  children  brought  a  little  table  and  another  a 
set  of  dishes.  Our  demonstrator,  dressed  in  a  white  apron 
and  cap,  accosted  each  customer  who  entered  the  store, 
told  the  merits  of  the  articles  she  had  on  display,  how  they 
were  prepared  for  the  table,  etc.,  and  gave  her  customer  a 
sample  to  take  home. 

We  also  had  agents  who  called  on  the  storekeeper  from 
time  to  time  and  this  feature  furnished  some  very  amusing 
conversations.  One  day  a  little  boy,  whose  father  is  a 
merchant,  said  he  would  like  to  be  a  coffee  salesman.  He 
put  a  package  of  coffee  into  the  bag  which  we  had  for  that 
purpose,  and  called  at  the  store.  This  was  the  con\ersation 
that   followed: 

Agent:     "Good  morning,  Thomas." 

Storekeeper:     "Good  morning,  Nathan." 

Agent:     "I  ha\e  some  new  coffee  that  I  would  like  you  to 
try." 

Storekeeper:     "I   have  plenty  of  coffee." 

Agent:     "But  this  is  something  new.     You  haven't  any  of 
this." 

Storekeeper:     "1  don't  need  an\'  more  of  any  kind." 

Agent:     "The  price   is  going  up.     Goffee  is  very  hard   to 
get." 

34 


"Projects" 

Storekeeper:     "I  Jon't  care.      I  have  a  lot  now.     Look  at 

the  shelf." 

Agent:     "Well,  you  had  better  order  some  right  now,  for 
there  is  going  to  be  a  big  strike  ne.xt  week  and  then 

you  cant  get  any." 

Thomas  could  think  of  no  answer  to  this  argument,  so 
he  was  forced  to  place  an  order. 

This  project  covered  seserai  weeks,  but  the  children 
never  grew  tired  of  it,  because  each  position  was  filled  by  a 
different  child  every  time  we  played.  It  furnished  a  wealth 
of  material  for  number  work  and  for  language  exercises. 


INDIAN  PROJECT 

RL  1' i'.'\  McGR/WV,  Imrst  Gradf-.  "B."  1~)/\vis  SiKiiiir  School 


To  enable  the  pupils  to  understand  the  part  played  by 
the  Indians  in  connection  with  the  feast  of  Thanksgi\ing, 
the  teacher  based  the  required  work  in  the  various  subjects 
upon  a  study  of  Indian  life.  The  project  was  launched  by 
arranging  the  environment  to  stimulate  interest  in  Indian 
life,  including  homes,  clothing,  acti\ities,  etc.  The  teacher 
arrange^.1  arounLl  the  room  a  number  of  brightly  colored 
pictures  of  hT(,li;in  chiefs  sccurc^l  from  the  art  t^lepartment 
of  the   Public    l.ibrarw 

Ihe  chiklrcn  e\  ince^l  much  interest  and  addei.!  lo  the 
collection  by  bringing  from  home  baskets,  blankets  and 
Indian  relics.  Some  of  the  little  boys  brought  their  Indian 
suits  which  they  were  permitted  to  wear  occasionally. 
The  girls,  not  to  be  outdone  in  the  matter  of  dress,  persuaded 
their  mothers  to  make  dresses  of  paper  cambric.  .An  Indian 
atmosphere  was  further  create*.!  by  decorating  the  wint^Iows 
with  silhouettes  illustrating  phases  of  Indian  life. 

Con\ersation  about  the  \arious  objects  of  interest 
furnished  material  for  reading  lessons.  A  reading  chart 
was  made  by  selecting  simple  sentences  used  by  the  chil- 
dren. Lach  page  of  the  chart  had  a  colored  picture  of 
Indian  life  which  intensified  the  interest.  The  following 
is  a  typical   lesson: 

35 


M iiiraLikec  Public  SchooLs 

This  is  a  little   Indian   boy. 
He  has  a  canoe. 
He  likes  to  ride  in  it. 
The  canoe  floats  on  the  water. 
The  canoe  is  pretty. 
It  is  made  of  bark. 
For   word  drills,  games  of  "Squat  Tag,"   "Hide-and- 
seek"  and  "Sliding"  were  used. 

For  number  work,  drill  cards  were  made  from  Indian 
post  cards.  Several  games,  such  as  "Ten  Little  Indians" 
and  "Arrow  Game"  served  to  enliven  the  drill. 

The  language  work  included  conversation  lessons, 
finger  plays,  short  poems,  and  stories.  By  this  means,  the 
pupils  learned  such  words  as  canoe,  papoose,  tepee  in  a 
natural  way.  The  study  of  Indian  life  furnished  valuable 
material  for  work  in  drawing  and  construction  in  the  re- 
production of  an  Indian  village,  which  necessitated  paper 
cutting  of  tepees,  etc.,  the  modeling  of  clay  dishes,  and 
the  making  of  simple  baskets. 

The  crowning  feature  of  the  project  was  a  trip  to  the 
Public  Museum,  which  contains  many  wonderful  Indian 
exhibits.  The  trip  provided  a  variety  of  interesting  ex- 
periences and  gave  the  children  much  clearer  ideas  of 
Indian  life.  In  addition  to  the  knowledge  acquired,  the 
children  gained  in  initiative  and  in  resourcefulness,  qualities 
conducive  to  success  in  real  life. 


THE   PILGRIMS 
First  Grade — Hartford  Avenue  School 

36 


"Projects" 

(An  Iriilian  t^rojcct  alon^i  similar  lines  was  develofied  by  the  pu/Ji/i 
of  the  First  Grade  of  the  Hartford  Avenue  School  with  the  assistance  of 
their  teacher,  Miss  Daisy  Hauser.  The  children  made  their  Indian  cos- 
tumes of  pajner  cambric  and  decorated  them  with  free-hand  cuttin):s  of 
Indian  motifs.  They  also  made  clay  heads  and  decorated  them  with  water 
color  paints.  In  connection  with  the  project,  the  Hiawatha  Primer  was 
greatly  enjoyed  by  the  children  and  served  to  emphasize  the  content  aspect 
of  readint:,.) 


THE  PILGRIMS 

ELLA  E.  CHRYSTAL,  First  Gradi:,  Cold  Si'rinc  Axknuh;  School 


'1  he  purpose  of  the  project  was  to  create  interest  in 
the  story  of  the  Pilgrims  in  order  to  have  the  children  under- 
stand the  significance  of  Thanksgiving.  I'or  several  lang- 
uage periods  the  teacher  told  in  simple  language  the  story 
of  the  Pilgrims,  using  the  following  pictures  to  illustrate 
important  incidents: 

The  Mayflower  in  Plymouth  harbor. 
The  Landing  of  the  Pilgrims. 
First  Houses  in  Plymouth. 
Pilgrims  Going  to  Church. 
1  he  lirsi  'thanksgiving  in  America. 

As  i^rol^lcms  in  manual  training  an^l  construction, 
the  pupils  ma^lc  1  hanksgi\ing  h(5oklets  and  represented 
Plymouth  Village  on  a  sandtable.  in  addition  to  the 
historical  value  of  the  study  of  the  Pilgrims,  the  project 
served  as  a  valuable  means  of  language  training. 


(A  playlet  entitled  "Pilgrim  Maids,"  ivas  presented  by  the  First  Grade 
pupils  of  the  Darllett  Avenue  School  as  a  part  of  the  school  program  for 
Thanksgiving.  The  teacher,  Miss  Rose  A.  Cook,  adapted  the  playlet 
published  in  the  "Primary  Education,"  tWovemher,  1907,  having  for  a 
theme  the  duties  of  little  Puritan  .^irl.f  The  playlet  was  repeated  for  the 
benefit  of  the  PurcnI-Teachers'   Association  of  the  district.) 

37 

14SSHS 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

FLOWER  GARDENING  IN  WINDOW  BOXES 

JENNIE  GLIDDEN,  Fif<.st  Grade  "A,"  Twkijih  Streki  School 


\fy  purpose  in  using  window  boxes  in  our  school  room 
for  the  cultivation  of  plants  was  to  foster  in  the  children  a 
love  for  flowers.  As  far  as  possible,  the  children  assisted 
in  the  preparation  and  care  of  our  sweet  pea  garden. 

The  tools  required  were  a  knife  and  a  sprinkling  can. 
The  materials  needed  were  wooden  boxes,  some  good  soil, 
and  different  varieties  of  sweet  pea  seeds.  The  steps  in 
planting  included  soaking  the  seeds  in  water,  preparing 
the  soil  in  the  boxes,  digging  trenches  one  inch  deep,  putting 
the  seeds  into  the  trenches,  watering  the  seeds,  and  covering 
them  with  soil. 

The  following  outline  is  a  summary  of  our  observations: 
Growth  of  Seeds: 

The  seeds  burst  open  to  let  the  baby  plant  out. 

The  roots  go  down  into  the  soil  to  find   food   for  the 

baby  plant. 
The  shoots  push  up   through  the  soil,   and   the   warm 

sunshine  makes  them  grow. 

Appearance  of  the  shoot: 

First  there  is  a  little  hook. 
Five  little  green   lca\'cs  appear. 
More  leaves  come. 
Tendrils  are  formed. 

Growth  of  Vines: 

When  the  little  x'incs  grow  tall,  they  need  support. 
The  tendrils  catch  hold  of  the  strings  for  support. 
The  \ines  are  growing  higher  every  day. 

At  the  present  date,  May  2,  children  are  eagerly  watch- 
ing for  the  appearance  of  buds  which  later  will  develop 
into  blossoms. 

Our  flower  gardening  project  was  of  value  in  accom- 
plishing some  of  the  aims  of  the  regular  school  branches. 
In  the  study  of  English,   for  example,   the  children  added 

38 


"Projects" 

such  worcls  as  root  anJ  tcnJril  lo  their  \ocabular\'.  [Resides, 
they  had  opportunity  for  oral  expression  as  the  result  of 
their  own  ohserxations.  lor  literary  appreciation,  they 
memorized  the  poem  "Little  Brown  Seeds  .  During  the 
music  period,  two  songs  were  learned,  namel\';  ""Little 
Brown  Brother"  and  ""Sweet  Pea  Ladies'",  f-or  reading, 
sentences  descripti\c  of  various  stages  in  the  dexelopment 
of  the  plant  were  usclI,  for  blackboard  lessons. 


Reading   Lessons   (Blackboard) 


12 
13 
14 
h' 
lb 
17 
IS 
10 
20 
21 
22 
23 

24 


We  have  two  big  window    bo.xes 

Ihey  are  full  of  good  soil. 

We  soaked   the  sweet   pea  seeds. 

We  made  three  trenches  in  each  bo.x. 

We  put  the  seeds  into  these  trenches. 

Then   wc  sprinkkxl   the  seeds  and  coxcred   ihem  with 

clirt. 
What   happened  down   in   the  soil? 
The  little  seeds  burst  open  to  let  the  baby  plant  out. 
A  little  root  pushed  down  into  the  ground  to  feed  the 

little  plant. 
A  little  shoot  pushei.1   up  thiough  the  groutul  to  Cind 

the  sunshine. 
When   the  shoot    first  came  up,   it    looker.!   like  a   little 

hook. 
I  hen    it  si raightencLl   up. 
Two  little  green   leaves  came. 
More   leaves  kept  coming. 
Then  tiny  tendrils  grew  out. 

The  tendrils   were   feeling  for  something  to  cling  to. 
The   little   \  ine  was  growing  tall. 
It    couki   not    hold   itself  up. 
We  put  up  strings  for  the  ten>.lnls  to  hokl  to. 
Now    the   \ines  can   grow    last. 
SoorT   little   Inkls   will   come. 

I  hen  we  can  watch  the  bikls  open  into  blossoms. 
1  he   l^lossoms   will    be    pink,    white,    j^urple.    lax'cndcr. 

and   red. 
They  will  look  \  ci\   prett\   ant.1  will  smell  \er\  sweet. 

39 


M iiivaukee  Public  Schools 

GERMINATION  OF  SEEDS 

) ESSIE  WAl.DRON,  First  Gradi-:  "A,"  Siscond  Avenue  School 


Realizing  how  very  little  the  average  city  child  knows 
about  plant  life,  I  awaited  a  favorable  opportunity  to  enlist 
the  interest  of  the  class  in  plant  growth.  The  subject  was 
introduced  through  the  reading  of  a  story  about  a  garden, 
p.  75,  "Wide-Awake  Primer".  When  I  asked  the  children, 
"Would  you  like  to  have  a  garden  and  see  how  seeds  grow^" 
they  eagerly  responded,  "Yes,  Miss  Waldron".  After  the 
discussion  of  various  plants,  we  decided  to  use  an  old  sand- 
table  which  was  stored  in  the  basement.  The  work  was 
started  March  10th  and  progressed  as  indicated  by  the 
following  record: 

March  10.  The  selection  of  a  place  for  the  sandtable  led 
to  the  consideration  of  light  necessary  for  plant  growth. 

March  14-18.  The  construction  of  the  sandtable  was  ob- 
served. The  need  for  dirt,  or  soil,  was  apparent,  and 
offers  for  supplying  this  need  were  numerous.  Dry 
and  soaked  peas  were  compared  and  the  embryo  plant 
was  discovered. 

March  28  -  April  1.  Bean  and  melon  seeds  were  examined. 
The  need  for  sand  to  keep  the  soil  porous  was  noted. 

April  4.  The  question  of  arranging  a  jar  for  observation 
of  the  growth  of  the  seeds  devolved  upon  the  teacher. 
A  straight-sided,  low,  glass  jar  was  lined  with  colored 
blotting  paper  so  that  the  children  could  see  the  effects 
of  the  water.  The  center  of  the  jar  was  filled  with 
moist  earth.  A  glass  dish  was  filled  with  water,  and 
a  piece  of  cotton  was  laid  on  top.  The  beans,  peas, 
and  melon  seeds  were  soakci.1  in  w  ater  and  their  swelling 
was  carefully  watched  by  the  pupils.  Reasons  for  the 
bubbles  at  the  side  of  the  tumbler  were  gi\'en. 

April  5.  The  soaked  seeds  were  pushed  between  the  moist 
blotting  paper  and  the  jar.  Seeds  were  placed  on  the 
cotton,  but  a  new  problem  presented  itself,  inasmuch 
as  the  cotton  absorbed  much  of  the  water  and  carried 
it  o\cr  the  sides.  The  pupils  noticed  that  the  water 
dropped  from  the  cotton  to  the  window  sill. 

40 


"  Proiects" 

April  6.  Upon  the  suggestion  of  one  of  the  pupils,  some 
adhesive  tape  was  used  to  prevent  the  dripping  of  the 
water.  The  jar  was  examined  and  it  was  found  that 
the  peas  had  sprouted. 

April  7.  To  improve  the  soil,  wood  ashes  were  mixed  w  ith 
the  soil  of  the  sandtable.  Corn  seeds  were  examined 
and  put  to  soak.  Ears  of  field  corn  and  of  popcorn 
were  shown.  The  teacher  prepared  a  piece  of  appar- 
atus consisting  of  a  cigar-hox  with  one  of  the  larger 
sides  replaced  with  glass  in  order  to  show  growth  of 
seeds  in  the  soil. 

April  8.  Several  pupils  made  drawings  of  the  sprouted 
seeds.  When  the  glass-sided  box  of  soil  was  watered, 
the  children  noticed  the  absorption  of  the  water  by 
the  soil.  A  rule  for  planting  seeds  was  learned,  and 
each  child  planted  either  corn  or  beans  in  the  sand- 
table  garden. 

April  12.  The  amount  of  water  to  be  gi\cn  to  seeds  was 
discussed. 

April  13.  The  class  noticed  the  darkening  of  the  stems  of 
the  peas  and   the  beans  in  the  glass  jar. 

April  15.  Changes  in  scclIs  plantC(-l  in  the  glass  jar  were 
noted.  The  song  "  Seeds "  (Primar\-  Mekxiics,  p.  10) 
was  taught. 

April  18.  The  corn  was  almost  an  inch  high.  A  jar  of 
corn  planted  at  home  by  one  of  the  boys  was  much 
farther  advanced  because  it  had  recei\"ed  more  sun- 
shine. Beans  in  the  glass  jar  began  to  show  leaf  de- 
velopment. 

April  10.  The  jar  anel  plants  were  borrowed  by  two  other 
classes.  When  the  jar  was  returned,  the  bean  plant 
was  measured  and  found  to  be  about  a  half  inch  abo\e 
the  jar.     The  responsiL">ility  for  watering  the  plant  was 

gix'cn  to  a  pupil, 

April  20.  Cotykxlons  (seed-leaves)  of  the  bean  plants  were 
noticed  and  their  use  to  the  tiny  plant  was  noted. 

April  21.  .After  obscr\ing  the  corn  in  the  sarul-tabic 
garden,  the  children  read  the  story  of  the  "Little  Red 
Hen"  and  learncLl  the  song  "Corn  vSoldiers". 

41 


Milwaukee  Publie  Schools 

April  22.  The  kindergarten  children  brought  to  our  room 
for  observation  a  jar  of  seeds  which  they  had  planted. 
An  offer  of  a  sweet  potato  growing  in  water  was  made 
by  one  of  our  visitors.  The  soaked  beans  were  found 
to  be  four  inches  above  the  ground,  whereas  the  un- 
soaked  seeds  were  just  beginning  to  develop  roots. 

April  27.  Specimens  of  corn  from  the  garden  were  used  as 
a  painting  lesson.  The  lesson  on  Corn  (Baldwin  and 
Bender,  p.  116),  was  read.  Specimens  of  corn  were 
given  to  the  blind  children  in  the  school. 

April  29.  The  children  learned  a  short  stanza  about  the 
watering  pot.  The  teacher  read  to  the  class  the  poem 
"How  the  Plant  Grew." 

As  soon  as  the  size  of  the  plants  and  the  weather  per- 
mit, the  plants  of  the  sand-table  garden  will  be  given  to  the 
pupils  for  their  home  garden.  Interest  in  plant  study  was 
not  confined  to  the  First  Grade.  The  pupils  in  the  Fifth 
Grade  rendered  a  greatly  appreciated  service  in  presenting 
to  the  First  Grade  an  illustrated  booklet. 


HEALTH  ABOVE  ALL 

LOUISE  EWALD,  First  Grade,  Clarke  Street  School 


In  order  to  help  us  to  keep  well,  we  selected  as  our 
motto  for  the  year,  "Health  Above  All".  The  activities 
involved  furnished  opportunities  for  instruction  in  manual 
training,  drawing,  reading,  music,  hygiene,  and  language, 
as  may  be  seen  by  the  following  brief  analysis: 

I.     Manual  Training: 

A.  Paper   folding. 

1.  Drinking  cup. 

2.  Handkerchief  case. 

B.  Paper  cutting: 

1.     Fruit  baskets  (cut  from  patterns). 

42 


Projects 

2.  Fruit  (Freehand  cutting  of  apples, 

plums,    bananas,     from    colored 

paper). 

3.  Milk  bottles. 

C.  Making  of  health  booklets,  describing  a  child's 

day. 

D.  Clay  modeling: 

1.  Loa\es  of  bread. 

2.  Fruit. 

3.  Vegetables. 

11.     Drawing: 

(Silhouette  and  colored  drawings.) 
Fruit — Apples  and  bananas.    Vegetables — Beets,  car- 
rots, potatoes. 

[II.     Reading: 

A.  Word    building   of  such   words   as   milk,    food, 

fruit,   bread,   etc.,   by  using  printed  letters 
of  the  alphabet. 

B.  Reading  of  health  rules  from  posters. 

V.     Hygiene: 

A.  Informal  talks  (from  "Good   Health   for  Girls 

and  Boys  ",  by  Bertha  M.  Brown). 

B.  Ventilation. 

C.  Foods. 

D.  Cleanliness. 

E.  F.xercise  and  rest. 

/.     Language: 

A.  Oral  expression. 

B.  Memorization  of  simple  health  rules. 

C.  Dramatization   of   "Mother   Goose    in    1  lealth- 

land  ',  ("The  Crusader".  Nov..   F>20). 

43 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 


VI.     Music 


"Early  to  Bed,  "  Congdon  Primer,  p.   52. 

"The  Clock,"  Congdon  Primer,  p.  46. 

"Good  Morning,"  Progressive  Reader,  No.   1,  p.  5. 

"The  Mulberry  Bush,"  Progressive  Reader,  No.    1, 

p.   21. 
"Fresh  Air,"  "The  Crusader,"  Nov.,   1920. 

Our  health  crusade,  carried  on  in  the  spirit  of  play,  has 
enlisted  the  interest  of  the  parents  who  are  now  assisting 
the  children  to  obser\e  their  health  rules  at  home. 


BOATS 

FLORENCE  HUGHES.  First  Gr.ade  "A,"'  Twenty-Seventh 
Avenue  School 


One  day  the  class  learned  u,e  song  of  "Bobby  Shafto". 
When  the  children  were  asked  the  meaning  of  the  expression 
"to  go  to  sea",  they  replied  "to  go  on  a  boat".  Some  of 
the  children  told  about  their  boat  trips  during  the  summer 
vacation,  and  one  little  Italian  boy,  Raffaelo,  gave  in  broken 
English,  a  vivid  account  of  crossing  the  ocean  in  a  big 
steamer.  On  the  following  day,  he  brought  a  photograph 
of  the  big  ocean  liner. 

Raffaelo's  story  created  great  interest  in  boats.  We 
cut  all  sorts  of  boat  pictures  from  papers  and  magazines 
and  classified  them  under  the  following  headings: 

Canoes 
Row  Boats 
Sail  Boats 
Steam  Boats 

Passenger 

Freight 

Car  Ferry 

Fire  Tug 

Fishing  Tug 

Tow  ing  Tug 

44 


Projects 

After  classifying  the  boats,  the  pupils  mounted  the 
pictures  in  scrap  books  w  hich  the\-  used  for  reference. 

The  most  interesting  boat  that  the  children  attempted 
to  make  was  the  sail  boat.  They  cut,  folded,  and  drew 
boats  at  school.  At  home,  the  boys  made  crude  boats,  and 
the  girls  dressed  sailor  dolls.  When  the  boats  were  brought 
to  school,  they  were  tested  to  see  whether  they  could  (loat. 
Most  of  the  boats  were  well-balanced  and  stood  the  test. 
The  sailing  of  the  boats  led  to  the  question,  ""Why  do  boats 
float ^"  The  children  tried  to  float  different  materials, 
such  as,  wood,  rubber,  paper,  and  iron.  They  discovered 
that  iron  or  tin  vessels  having  an  air  chamber,  would  float, 
whereas,  if  these  articles  were  tipped  to  exclude  the  air, 
they  would  sink. 

The  canoe,  also,  proved  to  be  of  much  interest  to  the 
children.  One  child  brought  a  birch  bark  canoe  that  his 
father  had  made.  All  the  children  cut  and  sewed  canoes 
from  cardboard,  measuring  their  thread  by  a  yard-stick. 
As  many  canoes  are  made  of  birch,  the  class  made  a  field 
trip  to  a  row  of  birch  trees  in  the  \icinity. 

In  connection  with  the  picture  of  fishing  boats,  the 
children  were  told  about  the  fishing  industry  as  it  is  carried 
on  at  Jones  Island  In  regard  to  fire  tugs,  many  of  the 
children  had  seen  fire  tugs  passing  the  bridge.  They  re- 
marked that  firemen  on  these  tugs  must  be  fine  sailors. 
This  observation  furnished  an  opportunity  to  impress  upon 
the  children  the  importance  of  quick  response  to  orders. 

The  project  created  greater  interest  in  school  lessons, 
inasmuch  as  the  chilren  associated  their  lessons  with  inter- 
esting activities  of  life,  as  the  following  synopsis  inJiciit-s- 

I.     Reading: 

Word   recognition     names  of  boats  an>.l   (ish. 
Reading  of  short   sentences   from   the  blackboari.! 

F^irst   Reader — Baldwin  an«.l   Beni^ier: 
The  Boat,  p.    104. 
Sailor  Boy,  p.    IOt\ 
Sailor  Bo>-  in  the  Rain,  p.    114 
Willie  and   the   I''ish,   p.   7b. 

45 


Mihvaukee  Public  Schools 

Beacon  Reader: 

Fishing,   p.  69. 
The  Bridge,  p.  89. 

Merrill   Primer: 

Rub-a-dub,   p.  84-86. 

I.  Phonics: 

[Practical    application    of    knowledge    of    phonics    in 
reading  names  of  boats. 

II.  Language: 

A.  Enlarging  the  vocabulary — The  children  learn 

new  words  as  a  need  for  the  expression  of 
thought. 

B.  Oral  expression  is  the  result  of  the  children's 

desire  to  tell  about  a  real  experience. 

C.  Poetry: 

1.  Memorized   by  the  children — 

"I   Saw  a  Ship-a-sailing." 

"The  Rain." 

"My  Bed  is  a  Boat." 

2.  Read  to  the  children  by  the  teacher. — 

"At  the  Seaside." 
"My  Ship  and   I." 
"Where  Go  the  Boats?" 

D.  vStories  told  by  the  teacher: 

"Brother  Wolf  and  the  Rock" — "Firelight 

Stories." 
"Footsteps  on  Water." 

[V.     Manual  Training: 

Making  boat  booklets. 

Construction  of  canoes  and  sailboats. 

46 


Projects" 


V.     Music: 

"Bobby  Shafto,"  Congdon  Primer. 

"Boat  Song,"  Songs  Children  Love,  p.    125 

"Sailing,"  Songs  Children  Love,  p.    179. 

\''l.     Picture  Study: 

"Calling!:  the  Ferr\'." 
"A  Helping  Hand." 

\  II.     Gymnastic  Games: 

Sailor  Drill. 
Row  ing. 


MOTHER  GOOSE 

Crius  project  lias  carried  out  by  the  teachers  oj  the  jirsA  grades  o)  the 
Lee  Street  School,  in  co-operation  ivilh  the  Principal,  Miss  Emma  J. 
Luebke,  to  whose  inspirational  leadership  a  large  measure  of  its  success 
was  due.  The  influence  of  the  project  extended  to  the  pupils  of  the  eighth 
grade,  who  made  Mother  Goose  posters,  nhich  they  presented  to  the  pupils 
of  the  first  grade.) 


Summary  of  Mother  Goose  Project 

N()R.\1.\  A     lORNL'^',  1-iKsi    tjR\i>i.      IV 
L     Mother  Goose: 

A.  Who  she  was. 

B.  Her  home  on   the  hill. 
Blackboard  pictures. 
Paper  cutting, 
i^osters. 


C.      Her 


jpparel. 

Blackboard  pictures. 
Cutting  and  pasting  hat  for  sent  occu- 
pation. 
Dressing  a  doll   like  Motlui    »..>.<■-«-. 


D.      Her  love  for  children. 
47 


''Projects" 

II.  Mother  Goose  Rhymes: 

A.  N'lemorized  and  dramatized: 

1.  Pease  Porridge  Hot, 

2.  Old  Woman  Who  Li\ed  in  a  Shoe. 

3.  To  Marker,  to  Market. 

4.  Jack,  be  Nimble. 

5.  Rock-a-Bye,  Baby. 

6.  Cock-a-Doodle,  Doo. 

7.  See  Saw,  Margery  Daw. 

8.  Little  Jack  Horner. 

9.  Little  Miss  Muffet. 
10.  Humpty  Dumpty. 

1  1.  Diddle-biddlc-numpling. 

1  2.  Jack  and  Jill. 

13.  Bow-wow-wow. 

14.  Little  Bo-Peep. 

15.  Ill  Tell  You  a  Story. 

B.  Songs  learned: 

1.  To  Market. 

2.  Rock-a-Bye,  Baby, 

3.  Diddle-Diddle-Dumpling. 

4.  Little  Jack  Horner. 

5.  Pease  Porridge. 

6.  Little  Bo-Peep. 

7.  Bow-wow-wow 

III.  Special  Study  of  Specific  Rhymes: 

A.      Jack  and  Jill. 

1 .  I  Iclpfulness  to  mother  w  hich  led  to  talks 

on  helpfulness  to  each  other,  to  the 
teacher,  etc. 

2.  Courtesy     greeting  Mother  Cjoosc  and 

other  characters,     (Learned  in  song 
form  and  as  a  reading  lesson.) 

3.  Source  of  water  supply   -Consiruclion 

of  a  pail. 

4.  Reading  of  simple  stearics  based  on  the 

rh\mc. 

49 


M iiiixuikee   Public  Schools 

B.  Bow-wow- wow : 

1 .  Usefulness  of  Jogs, 

2.  Care  of  pets. 

C.  Little  Bo-Peep: 

1.  Service  sheep  render  to  mankind. 

2.  Bo-Peep's  kindness  to  Jack  and  Jill. 

D.  Ill  tell  you  a  story 
About  Jack-A-Nory. 

1.  Story  telling  by  the  pupils. 

2.  Reading  of  short  stories. 

E.  a.      A   Primer   and    First   Reader,    Young   and 

Field — pp.  4-36. 
b.      Stories  from  library  books  and  from  books 
brought  from  home. 


FLORENCE  G.  OFFICER,  First  Grade  "A" 

Mother  Goose  rhymes  as  a  means  of  motivating  the 
curriculum" 

A.  Language: 

1.  Some  choice  selections  were  memorized. 

2.  Impromptu  dramatizations  afforded  op- 

portunity for  developing  initiative 
and  leadership. 

B.  Reading: 

1.  Mother  Goose  rhymes  were  read  from 

the  Young  and  Field  Reader,  Book 
I. 

2.  Different  pupils  prepared  selections  from 

books  obtained  from  the  Public 
Library  to  read  to  children  in  other 
classes. 

3.  Printed  sets  of  Mother  Goose  rhymes 

were  used  for  sentence  building. 

50 


^^  Projects" 

C.  Construction: 

The  following  rhymes  were  illustrated  by 
means  of  the  sanJtablc  and  Bradley  straight- 
line  figures: 

Jack  and  Jill. 

Little  Boy  Blue. 

Humpty  Dumpty. 

Little  Bo-Peep. 
Mother  Gooses  house  was  made  of  card- 
board as  a  group  project. 

D.  Music: 

1 .  Many  Mother  Goose  songs  were  learned. 

2.  Several    Mother    Goose    records    were 

played  on  the  phonograph. 

E.  Art  Appreciation: 

1.  The  children  obser\et.l  illustrations  of 
Mother  Goose  rhymes  by  Jessie 
Wilcox  Smith. 

Mother  (jOosc  rhymes  as  a  means  of  enlisting  the  in- 
terest  of  parent'^: 

1.  Parents  arc  interested  in  the  children's 

efforts   to  construct   articles  neces- 
sary for  sandtable  illustrations. 

2.  The  children  often  entertain  their  par- 

ents by  reciting  rhymes  learned  at 
school. 


(A  playlet  entitled  "Mother  Goose  Parly"  iras  presented  by  pupils 
of  the  First  and  Second  Grades  under  the  direction  of  their  teachers.  Miss 
Marie  Toohey.  and  Miss  Clara  W'oltrinii.  at  an  entertainment.  April  I 
and  2.  The  entertainment  was  arranged  by  the  principal.,  Mr.  G.  li. 
Tiefenthaler,  for  the  purpose  of  raising  funds  to  purchase  a  movinfi  picture 
machine  for  the  Mound  Street  School.  The  playlet  nas  taken  from  "Little 
Plays  and  Exercises,"  published  jointly  by  F.  A.  Owen  Pub.  Co.,  Dans 
ville,  New  York,  and  Hall  and  McCrcary,  Chicaf^o,  Illinois.  A  simple 
playlet  was  selected  because  the  children  were  too  wun^'  to  undertake  an 
original  dramatization  for  public  presentation.  As  the  Mother  Goose 
rhymes,  hoirever,  constitute  an  important  phase  of  the  language  work  in 
the  First  Grade,  the  chiUlrcn  iirre  lumiliar  with  the  characters  which  they 
impersonated.) 

51 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 


DOLL  HOUSE 

ROSE  MAI-ONE Y,  First  and  Second  Grades,  Walker 
Street  School 


Realizing  that  the  most  natural  interest  of  a  child  is 
to  duplicate  in  his  play  the  life  of  a  grown-up  in  the  home, 
the  teacher  provided  a  celluloid  doll  about  six  inches  long 
for  each  child.  The  children  did  not  need  to  be  asked  if 
they  wished  to  sew  for  their  dolls.  They  brought  pieces  of 
cloth,  needles,  and  thread,  and,  during  spare  moments,  they 
were  sewing,  cutting,  fitting  and  draping  dresses. 

We  talked  about  clothing.  Samples  of  the  three  tex- 
tiles were  brought  in  and  shown  to  the  children.  Children 
who  were  wearing  clothes  made  of  wool  were  picked  out  by 
the  other  children;  cotton,  likewise.  Silk  hair-ribbons  were 
pointed  out.  We  next  talked  about  the  clothes  their  dolls 
would  need  and  which  textiles  were  best  suited  for  the 
different  garments.  The  children  decided  to  make  the 
dress  and  underslip  of  cotton;  coat  or  cape  of  wool;  and 
hood,  of  silk.  They  said  that  their  mothers  used  patterns 
made  of  paper  for  their  dresses,  so  we  made  simple  patterns 
and  cut  our  garments  from  these  patterns. 

The  dress  was  made  kimona  style,  no  seam  on  the 
shoulder,  which  made  only  two  short  seams  to  sew.  The 
underslip  was  the  same,  except  sleeveless  and  shorter. 
Some  of  the  older  children  puit  hems  at  the  bottom  and 
trimmed  the  neck  and  sleeves  with  colored  thread.  A 
circular  cape  was  made  and  a  little  hood  or  bonnet  was 
fitted  to  the  doll.  Every  child  made  many  other  garments 
of  his  own  designing  and  some  developed  very  clever  ideas. 
Some  material  was  furnished  by  some  of  the  children  for 
those  who  could  not  bring  in  something  suitable,  and  in 
this  way  we  brought  in  a  little  moral  lesson  in  sharing  w  ith 
each  other. 

For  our  language  we  studied  cotton  and  wool.  Some 
raw  cotton  and  wool  was  lent  to  us.  We  secured  pictures 
from  the  Art  Room  of  the  Library.  For  our  stories  we 
used  the  book  "Four  Wonders  of  the  World,"  bv  Elnora 
E.  Shillig. 

52 


"Projects" 

We  made  a  booklet  and  called  it  the  ■"Story  of  Cotton." 
We  decorated  the  cover  of  the  booklet  in  our  manual  train- 
ing work.  For  our  story,  the  children  composed  the  sen- 
tences which  were  written  on  the  blackboard  and  which  in 
turn  were  copied  by  them  into  their  books.  This  formed 
an  incentive  for  the  writing  and  spelling  work.  In  their 
drawing  class,  the  children  drew  pictures  of  the  cotton 
plant,   which  they  inserted  in  their  books. 

Someone  suggested  that  the  doll  should  have  a  hou^e, 
w  hich  suggestion  gave  rise  to  another  project.  Two  orange 
crates,  each  divided  into  two  sections,  were  brought  in. 
These  were  fastened  together,  one  above  the  other,  making 
a  house  of  four  rooms.  A  roof  was  added,  windows  were 
cut,  the  outside  was  covered  with  tar  paper,  giving  the 
house  the  appearance  of  stucco.  The  roof  was  shingled 
and  the  interior  was  papered.  All  of  this  work  was  done 
by  several  boys,  working  in  a  group.  They  studied  their 
own  houses  and  the  houses  they  passed  on  the  way  to  and 
from  school,  bringing  in  all  the  ideas  they  needed  and  rrany 
which  they  could  not  use. 

.Another  project  grew  out  of  the  need  for  furniture  for 
the  house.  1  he  rest  of  the  boys  divided  themsel\-es  into 
groups,  one  working  on  furniture  for  the  kitchen:  another, 
for  the  dining-room:  a  third,  for  the  living  room:  and  a 
fourth,  for  the  bedroom,  b^or  the  bedroom.  the\'  made  a 
bed  and  a  dresser:  for  the  dining-room,  a  table,  four  chairs 
and  a  sideboard;  for  the  living-room,  a  settee,  a  chair  an*.! 
a  table:   and  for  the  kitchen,  a  table  and  a  stool. 

At  fust  the  chiklrcn  experimented  with  (KJd  pieces  of 
wood  which  they  brought  from  home.  Then  a  piece  of 
basswood  was  provided  for  them  to  make  the  real  pieces. 
They  looked  at  some  doll  furniture  they  had  at  home, 
studied  some  furniture  from  the  ten-cent  store,  asked  about 
furniture  and  kimber  at  home  and  learned  many  interesting 
things.  Thcx  learncLl  lo  reael  the  inch  an^i  half-inch  ruler 
and  to  use  ii  i|uilc  wcP.  1  he  furnilure  was  shellaced,  a 
different  color  being  uset.1  for  each  r(H)m. 

Then  came  work  for  the  girls  in  helping  to  furnish  the 
home,  (lurlains  were  made  for  the  windows,  covers  for 
the  tables,  furnishing  for  the  be>.l  and  the  dresser. 

In  LJiscussing  the  material  nee«.k\l  in  their  little  doll 
home,  the  chiklrcn    founel    they    needed    food    as    well    as 

53 


Milwaukee  Public  Schooi<; 


DOLL    HOUSE 
Second  Grade — Walker  Street  School 

clothing  and  shelter,  and  so  dishes  were  made  of  clay.  In 
this  connection,  these  problems  arose:  preservation  of 
food  for  winter;  fruits  and  vegetables  that  we  eat:  where 
they  come  from;  how  the  farmer  gets  them;  the  use  of 
seed,  to  plant  and  to  man.  The  children  knew  quite  a 
little  about  these  things  as  there  was  a  green  market  a 
short  distance  from  school,  and  because  many  of  the  chil- 
dren had  backyard  gardens.  Samples  of  the  fruits  and 
vegetables  which  their  mothers  had  preserved  were  brought 
in  and  used  in  draw^'ing,  painting  and  cutting  exercises. 

The  house  and  its  furnishing  was  used  by  the  chil- 
dren in  their  play  and  then  it  was  decided  to  leave  it  for 
the  next  class  that  came  into  the  room.  Of  course  the 
work  was  rather  crude  because  it  was  not  the  finished 
product  of  an  adult  that  was  sought,  but  a  w  hole-hearted, 
purposeful  activity  on  the  part  of  the  children:  and  this 
principle  of  Dr.  Dewey  was  always  kept  in  mind:  ""Develop- 
ment does  not  mean  just  getting  something  out  of  the  mind. 
It  is  a  development  out  of  the  experience  and  into  experience 
that  is  really  wanted.  And  this  is  impossible  save  as  just 
that  educatixe  medium  is  provided  which  will  enable  the 
powers  and  interests  that  have  been  selected  as  valuable 
to  function.  They  must  operate,  and  how  they  operate 
will   depend   almost   entirely   upon   the  stimuli   which   sur- 

54 


''  Projects" 

rounds  them,   and  the  material  upon  whieh  they  exercise 
themselves." 


THE  HOME 

MYR'I  Llv  RK.E,  Second  Grade  "B,  "  Clarki:  Street  School 


In  order  to  unif>'  the  work  of  the  classroom  and  to 
bring  the  activities  of  the  schoolroom  into  closer  relation 
to  the  life  activities  in  which  the  chiki  is  engaged  outside 
of  the  school,  we  chose  "The  Home"  as  a  center  of  interest. 

The  problems  arose  out  of  informal  talks  with  the 
children.  The  following  questions  naturally  arose  in  saying 
goocl-by  at  dismissal: 

Members  of  the  Home 

Who  is  at  home  when  you  get  there  after  school? 
If  mother  is  not  at  home,  what  do  you  do"! 
Who  else  is  at  home? 
When  does  father  get  home? 

In  this  way  the  \arious  members  of  the  family  were 
introduced. 

1.     THE  BABY; 

As  many  of  the  children  had  baby  brothers  or  sisters, 
the  interest  naturally  centered  about  the  baby  of  the  home. 
The  following  topics  were  discussed  with  much  enthusiasm: 

What  mother  does  for  the  baby.     , 

The  needs  of  the  baby. 

What   I   can  t^io   for  the   baby. 

What   father  does  wiih   the   baby. 

What  baby  docs. 

Baby's  age. 

Baby's  food. 

How  baby  gets  about. 

Putting  baby  to  sleep. 

Playing  with  baby.   etc. 

55 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

The  response  to  these  talks  was:  "Bylo  Baby  Bunt- 
ing," page  43  of  the  Progressive  Music  Series,  Book  One, 
which  was  sung  with  much  feeling.  Pictures  of  mothers 
and  babies  were  brought  in  and  mounted.  We  found 
"l^aby  Land,"  page  37  of  the  Baldwin  and  Bender  Second 
i-lcader,   a  gem  to  memorize  at  this  time. 

Which  is  the  way  to  Baby  Land^ 
Any  one  can  tell. 
Up  one  Hight,  to  your  right, — 
Please  to  ring  the  bell. 

\\  hat  can  you  see  in  Baby  Land? 
Little  folks  in  white, 
Downy  heads,  cradle  beds., 
Faces  pure  and  white. 

What  do  they  do  in  Baby  Land? 
Dream  and  wake  and  play. 
Laugh  and  crow,  shout  and  grow, — • 
Happy  times  have  they. 

What  do  they  say  in  Baby  LancH 
They  say  the  oddest  things, 
You  might  as  well  try  to  tell 
What  the  robin  sings. 

Who  is  the  queen  of  Baby  Land  ? 
Mother,  kind  and  sweet; 
And  her  love,  born  abo\'e, 
Guides  their  little  feet. 

The  children  took  great  delight  in  memorizing  the  fol- 
lowing jingles: 

This  little  pig  went  to  market; 
This  little  pig  stayed  at  home; 
.    This  little  pig  had  roast  beef, 
This  little  pig  had  none. 
This  little  pig  cried,  "Wee,  wee,  wee! 
I  cant  find  my  way  home!" 


Also: 


This  little  cow  eats  grass, 

This  little  cow  eats  hay, 

This  little  cow  drinks  water, 

This  little  cow  runs  away. 

This  little  cow  does  nothing  but  just  lie 

still  all  day. 
We"Il   whip  her! 

56 


"Projects" 

The  children  reported  that  the  babies  at  home  had  re- 
ceived these  jingles  with  great  glee. 


2.     THE  MOTHER: 

The  question,  "What  does  mother  do  when  she  is  not 
looking  after  the  baby?"  opened  a  new  field  of  discussion 
involving  all  the  activities  of  the  home — cooking,  washing, 
ironing,  mending,  dressmaking,  house-cleaning,  marketing. 

The  Little  Housewife,  which  is  gi\en  below,  was  re- 
cited and  dramatized  by  four  little  housewives  w  ith  the  aid 
of  the  following  utensils:  a  tiny  washtuh,  washboard, 
wash  line,  clothes  pins  and  doll  clothes;  toy  stove,  flatiron, 
ironing  board,  and  clothes  bars;  broom,  rolling  pin  and 
baking  dishes. 

The  Little  Housewife 

Oh,  Monday's  Dollys  washing  day, 

So  bring  out  the  little  tub; 
The  basket  new,  the  wee  board  too. 

Then  rub  and  rub  and  rub. 
Now    hang  the  clothes  upon  the  line, 

Out  in  the  sunshine  bright. 
We've  washed  our  little  dolly's  clothes 

All  sweet  and  clean  and  white. 

Oh,  Tuesday's  Dolly's  ironing  day, 

The  tiny  irons  we'll  heat; 
.'\nd  smooth  each  pretty  little  dress, 

So  dainty  and  so  neat. 
Then  hang  it  on  the  wooden  rack, 

So  carefully  to  air, 
Now  Dolly's  wardrobe  neat  ant.1  clean 

W  ill   show    a   housewife  s  care. 

Oh,    l'rii.la\"s  l^olK  s  sweeping  da\- 

So  l-iring  out  the  little  broom; 
And  soon   with  careful   willing  hands. 

We'll  sweep  the  dusty  room. 
And  ev'ry  speck  of  dust  an^l  t.lirt, 

We'll  quickly  drive  awa\', 
W  ell  make  the  house  with  order  shine 

I'or  Iwiday's  sweeping  da\-. 

57 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

Oh,  Saturday  is  baking  clay, 

For  Dolly  dear  must  eat; 
Some  fresh,  light  loaves  of  wheaten  bread, 

Some  cookies  round  and  sweet. 
And  now  our  weekly  work  is  done, 

Good  housewives  ail  are  we, 
The  house  is  clean  above,  below, 

The  cupboard's   full,   you  see. 

The  following  rhymes  were  also  memorized: 

Mix  a  pancake. 
Stir  a  pancake, 
Pop  it  in  the  pan. 
Fry  a  pancake, 
Toss  a  pancake, 
Catch  it,   if  you  can. 

Somebody  didn't  wipe  the  dishes  dry! 

How  do  you  know? 

Because   I   saw  the  platter  cry! 

There  were  two  big  tears  on  the  platters  face. 


The  little  story  "Dust  Under  the  Rug."  from  "Mother 
Stories,"  by  Maude  Lindsay,  inculcating  an  excellent  lesson 
in  attractive  form,  was  told  to  the  children,  and  they  were 
soon  able  to  reproduce  it  in  their  own  words.  The  chil- 
dren's part  as  helpers  in  the  home  was  discussed.  The 
idea   is  illustrated   in: 


Which  Loved  Best? 

BY    M.     .\.     C^RAICIN 

"I   love  you  mother,"'  said  little  John; 
Then,   forgetting  his  work,  his  cap  went  on. 
And  he  was  off  to  the  garden  swing, 
And  left  her  wood  and  water  to  bring. 

"I   love  you,   mother,  "   said  rosy  Nell; 
"I   love  you  better  than  tongue  can  tell."' 
Then  she  teased  and  pouted  full  half  the  day 
Till  her  mother  rejoiced  when  she  went  to  play. 

58 


"Projects" 

"I  love  you  mother,"  said  little  Fan; 
"Today   111  help  you  all   I  can; 
How  glad  I  am  that  school  doesn't  keep!" 
So  she  rocked  the  baby  till  it  fell  asleep. 

Then  stepping  softly  she  fetched  the  broom, 
And  swept  the  floor  and  tidied  the  room; 
Busy  and  happy  all  day  was  she, 
Helpful  and  happy  as  child  could  be. 

"  1   lo\e  \ou,  mother,"  again  they  said — 
Three  little  children  going  to  bed. 
How  do  you  think  that  mother  guessed 
Which  of  them  rcalK'  lo\cd  her  best? 

A  little  lesson  in  industry  is  taught  by  Christina  (i. 
Rossetti,  in  "Work  an^l  Play": 

A  pocket  handkerchief  to  hem. 

Oh,  dear;  Oh,  dear;  Oh,  dear! 
For  many  stitches  it  will  take 

Until  it's  done,   I   fear. 
But  set  a  stitch  and  then  a  stitch. 

And  stitch  and  stitch  away. 
Till  stitch  by  stitch  the  hem  is  done: 

And  after  work  is  play. 

The  children  were  as  enthusiastic  to  become  helpers 
in  the  school  as  in  the  home,  and  lo\ed  to  perform  their 
little  tasks  to  help  in  keeping  the  room  neat. 


3.     THF  1-ATIH:R: 

The  activities  of  the   father's  day   were  discussed   as 
were  those  of  the  mother's: 

bather's  breakfast  on  time. 
Where  must  he  be  on  time^ 
(Where  must  1  be  on  time!'  School,  meals,  chores 

why^) 
What  does  father  do  w  hen  he  comes  home  at  night ' 
W  hai   does  he  do  towards  keeping  the  home' 
What   are  his  expenses l* 

5') 


Miiivaiikee  Public  Schools 

4.     THE  FAMILY: 

Risirif^    in    the    morning.     The    following    poems    were 
memorized  at  this  point: 


Time  to   Rise 

BY  R.  L.  Stevenson 

A  birdie  with  a  yellow  hill 
Hopped  upon  the  window  sill; 
Cocked  his  shining  eye  and  said, 
"Ain't  you  "shamed,  you  sleepy  head?" 

Bed  in  Summer 

BY  R.  L.  Stevenson 

In  winter   I   get  up  at  night 
And  dress  by  yellow  candle-light, 
In  summer,  quite  the  other  way, 
I   have  to  go  to  bed  by  day. 
1   have  to  go  to  bed  and  see 
The  birds  still  hopping  on  the  tree, 
Or  hear  the  grown-up  peoples  feet 
Still  going  past  me  in  the  street. 
And  does  it  not  seem  hard  to  you. 
When  all  the  sky  is  clear  and  blue, 
And   I  should  like  so  much  to  play, 
To  have  to  go  to  bed  by  day? 

Morninfif  Ablutions:  Hands,  nails,  teeth,  hair, 
bathing,  clothing  were  topics  for  discussion.  We  found 
individual  praise  and  helpful  criticism  to  work  wonders. 

The  children  readily  saw  how  applicable  "The  Pig 
Brother,"  by  Laura  E.  Richards,  was  to  our  discussions  on 
personal  cleanliness,  and  were  soon  able  to  tell  the  story. 

Good  Breakfast:  W  hat  constitutes  a  good  breakfast 
for  father,  for  mother,  for  baby,  for  me'!  Milk  and  cocoa 
were  emphasized  as  best  drinks,  and  breakfast  foods  were 
praised.  The  other  meals  \\ere  discussed  in  a  similar 
manner. 

60 


^'Projects" 

Advantage  was  taken  of  this  occasion  to  correlate 
the  arithmetic  lesson  with  the  home  life,  'i'he  children 
demonstrated  that  two  pints  equal  one  quart  and  then 
worked  problems  arising  from  this  fact.  Again  they  col- 
lected empty  cartons  and  cans  and  produced  a  miniature 
grocery.  Soon  tiny  grocers  and  customers  were  involved 
in  problems  of  addition  and  subtraction  resulting  from  the 
purchases  made.  They  also  became  familiar  with  the 
relative  values  of  the  various  coins. 

Good  manners  at  the  table  were  discussed.  At  this 
point,  "Going  Out  to  Tea,"  p.  44  of  the  Baldwin  and  Bender 
Second  Reader,  was  memorized ; 

You  are  going  out  to  tea  today 

So  mind  your  manners  well; 
Let  all  accounts   I   hear  of  you 

Be  pleasant  ones  to  tell. 
Don't  spill  your  tea,  or  crumb  >our  bread, 

And  don't  tease  one  another; 
And  Tommy  mustn't  talk  too  much, 

Or  quarrel  with  his  brother. 
Say,  "  If  you  please,  "  and  "Thank  you,  maam." 

Come  home  at  eight  o'clock; 
And,   Fanny,  do  be  careful  that 

'^'oLi  do  not   tear  vour   frock. 


The   following  poems  were  recitci-l   an^l  i.iramaiizcv.1 

1.      1    think   it   would   be  lots  of  fun 
To  be  polite  to  c\eryone! 
A   boy  should   lift  his  little  hat, 
A  girl  should  curtsy,  just  like  that — 
And  both  should  use  such  words  as  these. 
"  Rxcuse  me,  sir  "   and  "if  you  please.  " 
Not  only  just  at  home  you  know. 
But  everywhere  that  they  would  go. 


If  a  lady  on  the  street, 
Or  my   teacher   1   shoukl   meet, 
From   my   luaJ   my   h.il    1    take 
Ant.1   a   bow    like   this   1    make. 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

Good  little  boys  should  never  say 
"I   will,"   and  "Give  me  these." 
Oh,  no!  that  never  is  the  way, 
But  "Mother,  if  you  please." 
And  "If  you  please"  to  sister  Ann 
Good  boys  to  say  are  ready; 
And  "Yes,  sir,"  to  a  gentleman. 
And  "^'es,  ma'am,"  to  a  lady. 


Golden  Keys 

4.     A  bunch  of  golden  keys  is  mine 

To  make  each  day  with  gladness  shine. 

"Good  morning!"   that's  the  golden  key 

That  unlocks  every  door  for  me. 

When  evening  comes,   "Good  night!  '   I  say 

And  close  the  door  of  each  glad  day. 

When  at  the  table,   "If  you  please," 

I  take  from  off  my  bunch  of  keys. 

When  friends  give  anything  to  me, 

I  use  the  little  "Thank  you"   key. 

"Excuse  me,"     "Beg  your  pardon,  "  too 

When  by  mistake  some  harm   I   do. 

Or  if  unkindly  harm   I've  given. 

With  "Forgive  me  "    I   shall  be   forgiven. 

On  a  golden  ring  these  keys   I'll   bind 

This  is  its  motto,   "Be  ye  kind. 

I'll  often  use  each  golden  key. 

And  then  a  child  polite   I'll  be. 

The  little  story  "The  Gooky,"  by  Laura  E.  Richards, 
was  reproduced  and  dramatized  by  the  children  while  we 
were  dealing  with  the  subject  of  meals.  The  poem  teaches 
unselfishness  and  brotherly  love  in  a  very  pretty  form. 
Another  story  which  the  children  liked  is  "Billy  Boy's 
Breakfast,  "   by  Carolyn  S.  Bailey. 

We  found  the  following  selections  from  the  Baldwin 
and  Bender  Second  Reader  to  deal  with  the  home: 

Playing  Fairy,   p.   49. 
The  Pet  Kittens,  p.  63. 
Playing  Happy  Family,  p.  68. 

62 


"Projects" 

Five  Little  Sisters,  p.   33. 

The  Lark  and  the  ChiLi,   p.   54. 

The  Bold  Hunter,  p.  80. 

The  children  took  great  interest  in  our  collection  of 
snapshots  of  themselves  and  of  other  members  of  their 
families. 

During  the  manual  training  period  such  pieces  of  fur- 
niture as  a  colonial  settee,  armchair,  sofa,  footstool,  dining 
table,  sideboard  and  writing  desk  were  constructed.  The 
greatest  pleasure,  however,  was  taken  in  collecting  and 
pasting  cutouts  in  a  booklet  called  "Our  Home."  Ihe 
cover  showed  the  exterior  of  the  house  and  the  letters — 
O  U  R  H  O  M  E— cut  free  hand  by  the  children.  The 
interior  disclosed  four  rooms — li\ing  room,  dining  room, 
bed  room  and  kitchen  on  the  four  pages  respectively.  The 
large  pictures  w  ere  pasted  in  the  foreground  and  the  smaller 
ones  farther  back.  Thus  a  lesson  in  perspective  was  pre- 
sented. 

Lessons  in  sentence  formation  were  given  from  the 
foregoing  discussions.  The  children  learned  to  respond 
with  sentences  both  oral  and  written  to  such  questions  as 
these: 

Who  is  at  home  when  you  get  there  after  schooL 

When  does  father  get   home!* 

What  can  you  do  to  help  mother? 

What  things  make  a  good  breakfast? 

In  conclusion,  let  me  state  that  we  spent  a  most  en- 
joyable and  profitable  semester  with  "The  Home"  as  the 
center  of  interest. 


LIOME  BUILDING 

GF.N'EVil-:\'L  Rl  \IPI  I  ,  Si-coND  CJr  \ni     ("i  m'i.i    Shu  i  i  .S.  ii....i 


The  subject  of  home  making  or  home  buikiing  forms 
an  extremely  interesting  and  instructi\e  project  for  both 
boys  and  girls  in  the  primary  grades.  Playing  house  is  one 
of  the  first  make-believe  games  of  early  childhood.  Then 
four  chairs  placed   together  will   make  a  cottage  or  castle 


63 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

to  the  satisfaction  of  all.  But  as  the  child  advances,  he 
incorporates  many  details  in  his  play  which  are  the  result 
of  his  grow  ing  observation.  Therefore  such  things  as  build- 
ing, decorating,  and  furnishing  a  home  open  up  to  the 
chilci's  mind  a  vast  number  of  problems  that  can  be  solved 
in  his  daily  activities  at  school.  Then,  too,  games,  rhymes, 
and  stories  of  life  within  the  home,  teaching  kindness,  polite- 
ness, and  cleanliness  have  great  ethical  value. 

The  work  was  begun  in  a  first  grade  classroom  with  a 
brief  discussion  of  why  we  build  houses.  Then  the  first 
question  was,  "What  must  we  have  before  w^e  can  build 
our  home?"  It  was  agreed  that  a  lot  must  be  purchased 
upon  which  to  build  our  house.  Several  little  boys  then 
made  enterprising  real  estate  dealers,  and  displayed  the 
advantages  of  different  parts  of  the  room  to  a  committee 
chosen  by  the  class  to  buy  the  lot.  The  sunniest  corner  of 
the  room  was  finally  selected,  and  paid  for  with  colored 
counters. 

Their  next  problem  was  planning  the  size  and  style  of 
the  house.  With  two  egg  crates  for  a  foundation,  plans 
were  necessarily  limited.  The  boys  volunteered  for  differ- 
ent jobs.  Some  were  architects,  others  carpenters,  and 
still  others  paper  hangers.  It  was  noticeable  that  in  each 
group  there  was  always  one  who  took  the  lead.  The  smallest 
boy  in  the  class  made  the  most  capable  carpenter;  he  in- 
variably had  the  best  solution  for  every  problem  and  was 
unusually  handy  with  saw  and  hammer. 

After  sawing  a  door  and  window  in  each  room,  the 
boys  nailed  the  crates  together  to  form  a  two-story  house, 
two  rooms  on  each  floor.  The  roof  was  made  of  a  large 
piece  of  cardboard  bent  in  the  center  to  form  a  gable. 
They  then  covered  the  outside  of  the  house  and  the  chimney 
with  Dennison  red  brick  crepe  paper.  They  papered  the 
walls  of  the  rooms  with  wall  paper  brought  from  home,  and 
also  covered  the  rough  floors  with  plain  brown  paper. 
Someone  brought  blue  and  white  checked  linoleum  for  the 
kitchen  floor.  While  the  boys  were  doing  the  carpenter 
work,  the  girls  were  sewing  curtains  and  drapes,  or  weaving 
rugs  of  materials  brought  from  home.  Though  hems  w  ere 
sometimes  crooked  and  stitches  large,  the  work  was  all 
their  own  and  they  were  very  proud  of  it. 

After  the  work  on  the  house  was  completed,  the  class- 
room was  transformed  into  a  furniture  factory.     The  chil- 

64 


"Projects" 

drcn  brought  colored  pictures  cut  from  magazines  for  ideas 
and  suggestions.  All  the  furniture  was  made  of  paper, 
dark  flowered  wall  paper  for  tapestry  living  room  suites, 
plain  brown  paper  for  the  dining  room,  plain  white  paper 
for  kitchen  chairs  and  tables.  Furniture,  made  of  cream 
or  gray  cover  paper  on  which  they  pasted  small  flower  cut- 
outs, represented  painted  bedroom  sets.  They  also  made 
candlesticks,  lamps,  bowls,  and  vases  of  clay.  Only  the 
best  of  everything  made  was  selected  for  the  house,  which 
encouraged  the  children  to  put  thought  and  care  into  every 
effort. 

Cutouts  from  magazines  added  artistic  touches  to  the 
house,  and  the  children  took  keen  delight  in  searching  for 
little  things.  One  cut  out  a  bird  cage  and  hung  it  before 
the  window,  others  cut  pictures  of  dresser  scarfs,  table 
covers,  and  pictures  for  the  walls. 

Besides  the  manual  work  involved  in  the  actual  making 
of  the  house,  the  project  work  was  developed  along  the  lines 
of  reading,  language  and  music.  Stories  that  were  read  or 
told,  poems,  dramatizations,  games  and  songs,  all  related 
to  the  home  or  home  interests.  All  of  the  activities  repre- 
sented steps  in  a  gradual  preparation  for  the  \\f)rk  of  a 
higher  grade. 


Outline  of   Project   Work   in   the  Various 
Subjects 

I.     Manual  Work: 

A.  Carpenter  Work: 

Sawing  doors  and  windows. 
Nailing  crates  together. 
Making  roof  an^l  chimney. 

B.  Papering: 

interior  and   exterior  of  house. 

C.  I-^ai^cr  fokling.  culling  an^-l  pasting  furniture. 

D.  Sewing — hemming  curlains  imd  (.Irapes. 

E.  Rug  w ea\ing     paper  mats,   rag  rugs. 

65 


Miliraukee  Public  Schools 

F.      Clay  modeling: 
Candlesticks. 
Bowls,  vases. 
Lamp  stands. 

II.     Language  Work: 

A.      Conversational  lessons: 
1.     Home   Interest — 


a.  What  father  does. 
What  mother  does. 

What  sister  and  brother  do. 
How  to  entertain. 

b.  Home  Spirit. 

Politeness. 

Love  and   kindness. 

Favors  for  parents. 

Unselfish  behavior  toward  sis- 
ter or  brother. 

Stories: 

How  They  Build  the  House — Jingle 
Primer. 

The  House  in  the  Woods — ^^J ingle  Primer. 

Piggv  Wig's  House — Story  Hour  Reader 
I." 

Frisky,    Skippy,    Trixy — Story    Hour 
Reader  I. 

The  Three  Pigs — Story  Hour  Reader  I. 

Peter  Rabbit — Beatrice  Potter. 

Pig  Brother — Laura  Richards. 

The    Discontented    Coffee    Pot — Fire- 
light Stories — C.   Bailey. 

Dramatir.ation: 

The  Old  Woman  in  the  Shoe — Realistic 

First  Reader — Mason  Layton. 
The  House  in  the  Woods — ^^I ingle  Primer. 
The  Three  Pigs — ^Jingle  Primer. 
Playing  House — Original. 
Pig  Brother — Laura  Richards. 

66 


'^Projects" 

Games: 

Mulberry  Bush — Prog.  Music  Reader. 
Telephone  Game. 

Sweeping   and    Dusting — Gavnor   Song 
Book  No.  2. 

Rhymes: 

Mother  Goose — 

Old  Mother  Hubbard. 
Old  Woman  in  the  Shoe. 
Polly  Put  the  Kettle  On. 

Finger  Plays: 

Five  Little  Pigs — Elson  T-'irst  Reader. 
Five  Little  Cow  s — Llson  I'irst  Reader. 
Who  Loved   Best — Hawthorne   f-'irsi 

Reader. 
Bed  in  Summer—  R.  L.  Stevenson. 
Whole    Duty    of   C^hildrcn     R.    L. 

Stexenson. 
Good     Children's     Street — Eugene 

Field. 
For  Playtime — Baklw  in  I'irst  Reader. 
For  Bedtime — Baldwin  lirst  Reader. 
Making  Bcliexe — .Alice  Kellogg. 


-^<-«p»- 


Let's  plav  that  we  are  ladies,  and  1  w  ill  come  to 
call, 
But  first    I    must  get   mother's  skirt   and   bonnet, 

muff  and  shawl, 
I'll  play  this  paper  is  m\-  car*.l 
And  now   Fll  ring  the  bell. 
Oh,  Mrs.   Brown!  How  do  you  ijo"! 
I   hope  you  re  very  well. 
Now,   Flsie,  ask  if  111  take  tea. 
It's  late,  so  hurry  up. 
I   like  mine  with  sugar,  please. 
This  is  a  pretty  cup. 
I   hope  your  Daisy's  pretty  well, 
Pretend  it's  time  to  go, 
Dear  Mrs.   Brown,  come  soon  iind  call, 
It  isn't    far.   you   know. 

67 


Music 


IV.     Art: 


M ilwaukee  Public  Schools 


Little   Sister's  Lullaby — Progressive  Music 

Book   I. 
Tick  Tock — Congdon's  Music  Primer. 
The  Clock — Congdon's  Music  Primer. 
Baby  Bunting — Congdon's  Music  Primer. 
Work  and  Play — Modern  Music  Series. 


1.  Picture  Study: 

Feeding  Her  Birds — Millet. 

Children  of  Charles  First — Van  Dyke. 

Happy  as  the  Day  is  Long — Faed. 

Birthday  Morning — Von  Bremen. 

See  What  Mother  Brought — Von  Bre- 
men. 

Two  Mothers  and  Their  Families — 
Gardner. 

Busy  Folks — A.  Ritzherger. 

Madonna  and  Child — Raphael. 

2.  Study    of    color    combinations    and    good 

taste  in  home. 


V.     Reading: 


1.     Required  Reading: 

Dolly   in   Bed — Baldwin   F'irst   Reader, 

p.  26. 
Girls    at    Tea — Baldwin    First    Reader, 

p.  42. 
Our    Home  —  Baldwin     First    Reader, 

p.   51. 
Our    House — Baldwin    First    Reader, 

p.  62. 
Making     Furniture  —  Beacon     Primer, 

p.   36. 
Big  Clock — Beacon  Primer,  p.  55. 
Three  Pigs — Beacon  Primer,  p.    117. 

68 


"Projects" 

Calling — Wide-Aw  ake,  p.  26. 
Wash  Day— Wide-Awake,  p.  7S. 
Saturday — Wide-Awake,  p.  90. 

2.     Supplementary: 

I-^lson    Primer  —  Piggy    ^^  ig  s    House, 

p.  41. 
Picture  Primer,   p.   00-103. 
Cyr's  New  Primer,   p.    105. 
New  Educational  Reader   I,  p.  S4. 
E^urt  Markham  Primer,  p.   59. 
Jones  First  Reader — Mother's  Helper, 

p.  99. 

Brownie  Primer: 

Where  We  Live,  p.   36. 
Our  New  Home,  p.  60. 

Folk  Lore  Primer: 

Jack's  House,  p.    15. 
What  Baby  Does,  p.   38. 
Jack  and  Jill's  House,  p.  68. 

Hawthorne  Primer: 

Making  Bread,  p.  62. 
Learning  to  Work,  p.  90. 

Child  Classics  Primer: 
A  Social  Call,   p.    16. 
Learning  to  Cook,  p.   59. 
Kate  and  Mary,  p.  62. 

V.     Preparation   for  Future  Reading: 

Baldwin's  Second  Readier: 

Going  Out  to  Tea,  p.   44. 
Playing  Happy  l"amily,  p.  68. 
The  Little  Builder,   p.  90. 

Beacon  lirst  Reader: 

The  House  That  Jack  Built,  p.  22. 

Old  Mother  Hubbard,  p.  40. 

Titty  Mouse  and  Tatty  Mouse,  p.  42. 

69 


M ilwaukee  Public  Schools 

CHILD'S  GROCERY  STORE 

AI,ICE  SCHUPPENER,  SiicoND  Grade,  Clarke-:  Street  School 


Little  people  bring  experiences  to  school  which  they 
have  gained  from  life  about  them  before  coming  to  school. 
They  enjoy  continuing  those  experiences  and  do  not  like 
to  be  turned  abruptly  from  a  reading  lesson  to  a  spelling 
lesson  with  little  other  connection  than  new  words.  Where 
can  one  find  a  better  project  for  joining  all  lessons  than  a 
grocery  store?  From  the  time  it  is  begun  until  the  end  of 
the  school  year  the  children  work  happily. 

The  first  class  had  conversational  lessons  in  which 
they  planned  just  what  they  would  need  in  a  grocery,  and 
the  teacher  wrote  the  list  on  the  blackboard: 

milk  flour  cocoa 

cereals  salt  sugar,  etc. 

The  next  day  the  children  brought  with  them  empty 
boxes  and  cans  which  had  previously  contained  some  of 
the  above-mentioned  foods.  They  also  brought  little  sacks 
of  salt  and  flour  which  they  had  made.  Then  came  the 
pasting  of  price  tags  on  the  merchandise  and  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  articles  on  shelves  which  a  cupboard  in  the  room 
provided.  Natural  and  spontaneous  language  lessons  re- 
sulted. "Walter,  let  us  put  all  the  breakfast  foods  on  one 
shelf  so  we  can  find  them  easily  as  the  customer  calls  for 
one  kind."  "Yes,  Mildred;  and  the  milk,  sugar,  and  cocoa 
on  the  next  shelf,"  was  the  pleasant  response. 

When   the   children   go   to  the   store,    they   use   polite 

expressions    and    correct    forms  in    asking    for    the    articles 

which  they  desire  to  purchase.  Here  is  an  often  repeated 
dialogue: 

"Good  morning,  \Iiss  Jane." 

"Good  morning,   Ralph." 

"What  do  you  \\ish  this  morning,  Miss  Jane?" 

"A  bag  of  salt. " 

70 


"Projects" 

"One  cent.      Is  that   all'      We  ha\e  a  new  l^Ien^l  of  coffee 

on  sale  this  morning  at  i\\  cl\e  cents  a  pound.      Wouldn't 

you   like  to  try  a  pound ^'" 
"Not  today,  thank  you.     Fi\e  cents  and  one  cent  are  si.x 

cents." 
"^'our  change,"  said  Ral)">h,  "is  four  cents.     Ten  cents  less 

si.x  cents  is  four  cents." 
"Good-bye,   Ralph." 
"Good-bye. 

Occasionally  a  child  uses  a  telephone  for  ordering 
groceries.  The  telephones  are  make-bclic\c,  to  be  sure, 
but  they  answer  the  purpose. 

One  morning  my  class  informed  me  that  their  mothers 
carried  baskets  to  the  store  when  they  shopped,  and  so 
they  expressed  a  desire  to  make  baskets  for  themselves, 
on  manual  training  day.  Each  child  was  given  a  sheet  of 
manila  drawing  paper,  nine  by  twelve,  and  each  one  con- 
structed a  basket  for  marketing. 

Sometimes  for  a  writing  and  spelling  lesson  for  scat 
work,  the  children  w  rite  out  shopping  lists,  placing  in  separ- 
ate columns  all  the  words  containing  three  letters,  four 
letters,  etc.,  of  the  names  of  articles  in  the  store. 

When  I  he  class  completes  a  hard  lesson  in  reading,  wc 
make  up  reading  lessons  about  our  store.  These  are  printed 
on  the  blackboard  for  extra  reading  material.  The  pupils 
enjoy  these  lessons  and  learn  to  read  phrases  which  were 
previousI\-  only  in  their  speaking  \'ocabular\-. 

The  pleasure  to  the  teacher  in  the  interest  anv.1  >.lelight 

of  the  chiklren   repa\s   her   for   her   labor. 

What  have  the  children  gained  in  co-operation,  ob- 
ser\alion,  and  practical  knowledge,  and  how  has  the  work 
been  correlated  with  the  strictly  academic  subjects'  I  he 
language  lessons  are  spontaneous  expressions,  which  must 
be  changed  into  correct  forms  of  speech  in  on^ler  to  faciliiaic 
transactions.  Courteous  manners  and  self-control  arc  cul- 
ti\ateel,  for  each  child  has  the  liberty  of  moving  about  the 
room   fi-eel\-. 

Next  our  arithmetic  lesson  has  a  definite  purpose  lor 
each  combination  mastered  means  skill  in  conducting  the 

71 


Milivaiikee  Public  School.s 

ChAJ's   Store.       The   subtruclion    facts   arc   readily    learned 
by  makinj^  ehan/^c  with  real  dimes,  nickels,  and  pennies. 

Spelling  and  writing  have  their  share  in  our  project, 
lor  often  the  children  write  out  a  shopping  list,  so  that  not 
one  of  the  articles  required  by  them  may  be  forgotten  when 
their  chance  to  go  shopping  occurs. 

Manual  training  exercises  lend  themseh'cs  to  the  whole 
scheme,  for  boxes,  baskets,  and  bags  are  needed  by  all  shop- 
keepers. 


FARM  ANIMALS 

ANNETTE  KOT  TNAUER,  Second  Grade,  Weil  Street  School 


Purpose: 
The  purpose  of  this  project  was  two-fold: 

A.  To  make  knowledge  more  vital  by  correlating 

the  children's  school  activities  with  those 
of  actual   life. 

B.  To  aid  city  children  to  interpret  their  environ- 

ment, inasmuch  as  they  frequently  evince 
lamentable  ignorance  of  the  source  of  ma- 
terials in  common  use. 

Origin: 

The  children  were  allowed  to  name  the  kinds  of  food 
served  for  breakfast  and  for  dinner.  Among  the 
foods  mentioned  were  milk,  butter,  eggs,  bread, 
meat,  and  ice  cream.  In  discuissing  these  foods, 
we  learno.1  that  farm  animals  helped  us  in  many 
ways. 

r^cNclopment : 

The  children  desired  to  visit  a  farm,  but,  as  it  was  not 
expedient  to  attempt  a  trip,  we  contented  our- 
selves with  an  imaginary  visit.  The  question  of 
transportation  afforded  opportunity  for  a  pur- 
poseful   language    lesson.     Some    of   the    children 

72 


Projects 

preferred  to  ride  in  electric  cars,  while  others  chose 
steam  cars.  A  few  desired  to  travel  by  horse,  but 
the  majority  wished  to  go  by  automobile.  Some 
of  the  proud  owners  of  Ford  machines  were  chosen 
as  drivers,  and  they  cranked  their  cars  in  very 
realistic  fashion,  while  others  were  contented  to 
be  "make-believe"  passengers.  After  a  delightful 
trip,  we  reached  the  country  which  we  recogniced 
by  the  many  aspects  in  which  it  differed  from  the 
city.  The  houses  were  far  apart  and  there  were 
large  barns  and  growing  crops.  We  also  observed 
many  animals,  and  we  memorized  the  following 
stanza,  descriptive  of  their  greeting: 
I  went  into  the  country,  the  farmers  pets  to  see. 
And  every  single  one  of  them  began  to  talk  to  me; 
'Baa,  baa,'  'Moo,  moo,  moo,'  'Cock-a-doo-dle-do,' 
'Quack,  quack,  quack,'  'Coo,  coo,  coo,' 
Little  friend,  how  do  you  do?" 

W'c  then  made  a  study  of  the  common  farm  animals, 
beginning  with  the  cow.  The  chiLlren  learned  the  follow- 
ing finger  play  by  E.  Poulsson: 

"This  cow  eats  grass, 
This  cow  eats  hay. 
This  cow  drinks  water; 
This  cow  runs  away; 
This   little  cow  does   nothing   but  just    lie 

still  all  day — 
W'c" II   whip  her." 

They  also  learned  the  following  poems  from  ihc  "Sec- 
ond Reader,  "  Baldwin  and  Bender: 

"Thank   ^'oli,   Prctt\'  Cow,"   p.    147. 
"Mooley  Cow,"   p.   29. 
"The  Cow,  p.    146. 

After  the  children  had  read  the  lesson  entitkxl,  "I  low- 
Butter  is  N4ade,  "  Second  Reader,  pp.   1 43- 1 4b.  thc\   mem- 

orizci.1  ihis  poem,  "Makirng  Ikitter,  "  by  1'.  Poulssoti: 

Skim,   skim,   skim 

W  ilh  the  skimmer  bright; 

Take  the  rich  and  yellow  cream, 

Leave  the  milk  so  white. 

73 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

Churn,  churn,  churn, 
Now  'tis  churning  day; 
Till  the  cream  to  butter  turn, 
Dasher  must  not  stay. 

Press,  press,  press. 
All  the  milk  must  be 
From  the  golden  butter  now- 
Pressed  out  carefully. 

Pat,  pat,  pat. 

Make  it  smooth  and  round. 
See!  the  roll  of  butter's  done — • 
Won't  you  buy  a  pound? 

Taste,  oh!  taste. 

This  is  very  nice. 

Spread  it  on  the  children's  bread, 

Give  them  each  a  slice. 

The  class  then  made  some  butter  and  inxited  the  pupils 
of  the  First  Grade  to  partake  of  their  lunch  of  bread  and 
butter.  In  connection  with  the  making  of  butter,  the 
winter  and  summer  prices  of  butter  were  compared. 

The  search  for  material  extended  beyond  the  school 
room.  We  are  indebted  to  "The  Metropolitan  Insurance 
Co.  '  for  a  booklet  about  milk  and  to  the  "E.xtension  Divi- 
sion of  the  University  of  Wisconsin"  for  \'aluable  informa- 
tion concerning  farm  animals  and  their  products.  The 
Gridley  Milk  Co.,  also,  lent  its  aid  in  furnishing  cottage 
and  cream  cheese  containers,  butter  cartons  and  folders 
contrasting  the  clean  and  the  careless  dairies.  This  led  to 
a  simple  discussion  of  milking  by  hand  and  by  machinery, 
of  cleanliness  of  barns,  of  the  use  of  the  separator,  of  cream- 
eries,  and  of  bottling  milk  for  delivery. 

In  addition  to  milk,  butter,  cream  and  cheese  as  pro- 
ducts obtained  from  the  cow,  several  children  mentioned 
leather  from  the  fact  that  their  parents  are  employed  in  a 
tannery.  It  was  a  great  surprise  to  all  of  the  children,  how- 
ever, to  learn  that  some  kinds  of  buttons  are  made  from 
cows'  horns.  The  study  of  the  cow  was  concluded  by  noting 
the  distinction  between  "beef  "  and  "veal." 

The  sheep,  the  pig.  the  horse,  and  the  hen  were  studied 
in  a  similar  manner.     The  interest  became  so  intense  that 

74 


"Projects" 

the  children  constructed  a  play  farm,  the  hoys  building  the 
barn.  Contributions  for  the  farm  were  numerous  and 
varied,  including  artificial  grass  for  meadows  and  a  piece  of 
glass  for  a  pond.  On  a  table  near  the  toy  farm,  we  arranged 
an  exhibition  of  articles  derived  from  farm  animals;  such  as, 
horn  buttons,  leather  gloves,  wool  mittens,  etc.  We  also 
made  booklets,  showing  farm  animals,  their  food,  and  useful 
products  obtained  from  them.  The  topic  of  farm  animals 
provides  a  motive  for  many  phases  of  school  work,  as  indi- 
cated by  the  following  brief  analysis; 


READING: 

Second  Reader,  Baldwin  and  Bender. 

"  Work-a-Day  Doings  on  the  Farm" — E.  Scrl. 

Cyrs  Graded  Art  Readers — Book  2. 

Elson's  Primary  Reader. 

Beacon   Introductory  Seconi.1  Reader. 

Beacon  Second  Reader. 

Library   Books. 

LANGUAGE: 

Gonxersation  about  animals. 
Dramatization  of  "The  Pig  Brother." 
Finger  Plays. 
Memorization  of  poems. 

MANUAL    J  RAINING: 

Construction  of  the  follow  ing:    barn,  fence,  pig  s  trough, 

chicken  coop,   and  churn. 
Making  of  booklets. 

DRAWINC;: 

Representation  of  a  barn. 

Pose  drawing  of  a  girl  churning. 

PICTLIRI-    SrUD^': 

"  Ihc   Nurscr\." 
"Just   Out." 

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Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

"The  Two  Mothers." 

'Milking  Time." 

"O.xcn   i-'low  ing." 

■'I'he  N'lorning  Greeting." 

'The  lind  of  the  Journey." 

■jhc  RclLirn  to  the  Barnyard." 


HOW  FOOD  IS  OBTAINED 

FRIDA  KRILLGER,  Second  Grade  "A"  and  Third  Grade 
"B,"  Second  Avenue  School 


It  was  the  harvest  season,  affording  abundant  oppor- 
cunities  to  study  how  food  is  obtained.  The  class  consisted 
of  forty-seven- pupils,  thirty-six  being  enrolled  in  the  second 
grade  and  eleven  in  the  third  grade.  The  regular  class 
teacher  had  been  absent  until  the  first  of  October.  On  her 
return  she  questioned  the  class  as  to  what  had  been  going 
on  in  the  school  during  her  absence.  Among  other  things 
there  had  been  a  garden  exhibit,  which  was  selected  as  a 
starting  point.  Some  of  the  children  had  brought  vegetables 
from  their  gardens,  and  others  had  bought  vegetables  for 
home  use  at  the  green  market.  The  teacher  asked  whether 
all  knew  about  the  market,  and,  upon  learning  that  most  of 
the  class  had  never  visited  a  market,  she  invited  the  pupils 
to  accompany  her  after  school.  The  invitation  was  eagerly 
accepted,  and  the  consent  of  their  parents  was  obtained. 

At  the  market  the  class  bought  vegetables  which 
served  as  models  for  drawing  and  painting  lessons.  Things 
not  raised  in  their  own  gardens  had  been  brought  to  the 
market  from  the  farms.  Some  of  the  children  had  no  idea 
of  a  farm,  but  those  who  had  seen  one  were  most  enthusiastic 
in  telling  about  it.  What  could  be  done  to  help  others  to 
see  a  farm?  There  was  a  little  hesitation  and  discussion. 
However,  one  boy  who  had  often  told  about  his  grand- 
father's farm,  and  who  had  recently  helped  to  fill  the  silo, 
offered  a  solution.  His  invitation  to  visit  the  farm  was  so 
urgent  and  enthusiastic  that  it  was  decided  to  let  him  ask 
his  parents  for  permission  to  invite  the  class.  The  children 
were  assured  that  they  were  more  than  welcome.     They 

76 


'^Projects" 

were  to  take  the  street  car  and  to  walk  a  mile  besides.     Pro- 
vision was  to  be  made  for  riding  for  those  who  could  not 

walk  that  distance. 

After  making  these  plans,  it  was  necessary  to  write 
a  letter  to  the  principal  asking  consent  to  go  because  the 
visit  would  require  the  whole  afternoon.  This  request  was 
granted,  and  excitement  ran  high.  The  fare  was  to  be  five 
cents  round  trip  and  an  e.xtra  zone  fare  each  way.  This 
afforded  excellent  number  lessons.  The  discovery  on  the 
street  car  that  the  zone  fare  for  children  was  one  cent  in- 
stead of  two,  gave  opportunity  for  more  number  lessons 
and  handling  of  money. 

On  the  appointed  day,  the  trip  was  taken.  Nexer  did 
a  class  of  children  have  such  a  welcome.  The  farm  was 
theirs — house  and  barn,  yard  and  orchard,  vegetable  garden 
and  wagon  sheds.  There  were  beautiful  Holstein  cows, 
pigs,  horses,  heifers,  a  young  calf,  and  chickens.  There 
were  corn  stalks  fourteen  feet  high.  But  best  of  all,  there 
were  three  ponies.  Lauren,  the  young  host,  and  his  mother 
hitched  the  ponies  to  the  pony  cart,  and,  in  fours  and  fives, 
all  the  forty-seven  little  savages  had  a  ride  down  the  road. 
Lauren,  though  only  eight  years  of  age,  did  all  the  driving. 
He  further  entertained  his  young  friends  by  doing  circus 
tricks  on  the  back  of  the  third  pony.  So  successful  w  as  his 
performance  that  the  chiklrcn  were  conxiiIscLl  w  ith  laughter. 

After  about  an  hour  of  this  general  amusement  and 
excitement,  everyone  was  invited  to  the  front  yard.  Mere 
was  a  table  with  tempting  refreshments  consisting  of  san».l- 
wiches,  cookies,  and  lemonade.  Mother  and  grandmother 
served  the  good  things  as  the  children  passed  around  the 
table.     This  was  F-*aradise,   indeed! 

Next  to  the  ponies,  the  cows  were  of  most  interest, 
giving  the  children  the  thought  that  the  milk  they  drank 
in  the  city  might  really  come  from  those  \ery  cows  or  the 
butter  they  ate  might  be  made  of  the  cream   from  their 

milk. 

All  the  children  were  taken  back  to  the  street  car  in 
numerous  trips  by  ponies  and  by  automobile. 

Cxjlorei.!  oak  leaves  were  brought  to  school  ior  «.!ecora- 
tion  and  for  painting.  Two  letters  of  thanks  were  written 
by  the  class,  one  to  Lauren's  mother,  and  one  to  the  grand- 

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Milivaukee  Public  Schools 

parents.     These  letters  were  sent  by  mail,  thereby  connect- 
ing school   life  with  real   life. 

One  morning  during  the  music  period  the  children 
sang  "Milk  Maids'  Morning  Song,"  which  they  had  always 
liked  on  account  of  its  marked  rhythm.  Suddenly  their 
eyes  began  to  sparkle,  for  the  song  had  acquired  a  new  mean- 
ing. Some  of  the  children  had  observed  the  process  of 
butter  making  and  they  keenly  appreciated  the  meaning 
of  the  closing  refrain: 

"Making  butter's  the  best  of  fun, 

Churning,   Churning: 
Oh!  We're  sorry  when  summer's  done, 

Mary,  MolHe  and   I." 


For  the  benefit  of  the  pupils  who  had  never  seen  how- 
butter  is  made,  it  was  proposed  to  make  butter  in  school. 
After  some  discussion  it  was  decided  to  let  every  child  try 
to  earn  some  money  to  purchase  the  cream.  No  one  was  to 
give  more  than  three  cents,  so  all  would  have  a  chance. 
The  contribution  of  one  boy  who  had  asked  his  mother  for 
two  cents  without  working  for  it  was  refused  point  blank. 
On  the  second  or  third  day  another  boy  asked  what  was  to 
be  done  with  the  butter  after  it  was  made.  That  was  a  new 
question.  Suggestions  were  that  each  might  take  home  a 
piece:  that  it  should  be  given  to  the  teacher;  that  each 
might  bring  a  slice  of  bread  to  school,  and  so  on.  It  was 
finally  decided  to  earn  a  little  more  money  to  buy  a  few 
pounds  of  crackers  to  eat  with  the  butter.  That,  of  course, 
meant  a  little  party,  requiring  a  written  request  to  the 
principal  for  permission  to  have  it,  and  also  an  invitation 
for  her  to  be  present.  The  request  was  granted  and  the 
invitation  accepted.  Cream  was  bought  and  butter  made 
in  a  glass  jar,  the  children  taking  turns  in  churning.  After 
the  arrangements  were  completed,  the  party  took  place 
and  everybody  had  an  enjoyable  time. 

While  working  on  their  project,  the  children  discovered 
in  their  Second  Reader  a  lesson,  "How  Lucy  Makes  But- 
ter," and  a  poem  "My  Pony.  "  In  a  supplementary  reader 
they  found  a  poem  entitled  "Milking  Time,"  which  was 
very  appropriate.  The  story  of  Robinson  Crusoe,  w  ho  had 
neither  farm  nor  grain,  nor  cows  nor  horses,  was  read  in  the 

78 


"  Projects 

Second  Reader  with  sympathetic  interest.  In  the  Third 
Reader,  the  difficulties  of  the  Pilgrims  were  more  keenly 
appreciated. 

In  addition  to  affording  natural  opportunities  for  in- 
struction in  arithmetic,  spelling,  writing  and  language,  the 
project  furnished  a  basis  for  manual  training.  H\ery  child 
made  a  booklet  containing  draw  ings  and  cut-outs  of  \ege- 
tables,  fruits,  animals  and  farm  machinery.  The  booklets 
were  taken  home  at  the  close  of  the  term  and  undoubtedly 
served  to  arouse  the  interest  of  the  parents  in  other  features 
of  school  work. 


BIRDS 

VIOLA  EIFLER,  Sf.cond  GR,\in-:,  \\  ai.kf.r  Street  School 


This  project  was  suggested  by  the  story  of  "The 
kittle  Robin,"  page  14  of  the  Baldwin  and  Bender  Second 
Reader.  After  reading  the  lesson,  we  spoke  about  the 
habits  of  the  robin,  of  its  value  to  the  farmer,  of  its  song, 
and  of  its  nest  building.  We  secured  a  stuffed  specimen 
from  the  Public  Museum  and  a  nest  from  the  kindergarten. 
I  told  the  children  the  Indian  legend  of  "The  Origin  of  the 
Robin,  "  found  in  "Our  Birds  and  their  Nestlings,"  and  also 
the  legend  of  "How  the  Robins  Breast  E^ecame  Red." 
The  children  learned  the  poem,  "The  Naughty  Little 
Robin,"   by  Phoebe  Car\-. 

They  told  about  many  other  kinds  of  birds,  which  wc 
studied  from  stuffed  specimens,  from  Perry  pictures  of 
birds,  or  from  an  Audubon  chart.  Each  day  we  identified 
a  stuffed  specimen.  The  children  looked  for  its  picture 
and  tried  to  read  the  name  if  they  did  not  know  it. 

One  day  a  little  boy  told  about  another  boy  who  had 
killed  a  robin.  This  led  to  a  discussion  of  why  it  is  wrong 
to  kill  biixls,  W  c  spoke  about  the  usefulness  of  birds  to 
the  farmer  in  destroying  harmful  insects,  thereby  protecting 
plants  which  furnish  us  with  food.  I  told  the  story  of 
Longfellow's  "Birds  of  Killingworth."  and  wc  agreed  to 
care  for  our  feathered  friench.  Among  the  enemies  of  birds. 
cats  were  mentioned.  The  children  related  how  cats  had 
tried  to  catch  their  pet  canaries.     One  little  boy  brought 

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Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

his  canarybird  to  school,  which  greatly  added  to  the  in- 
terest. The  importance  of  feeding  the  bird,  giving  it  water, 
and  keeping  its  cage  clean  was  emphasized  by  caring  for 
the   living  specimen. 

The  study  of  the  lark  was  introdiiceLl  by  means  of  a 
reading  lesson  entitled  "The  Lark  and  the  Child,"  p.  54, 
Second  Reader,  Baldwin  and  Bender.  The  children  drama- 
tized a  similar  story  called  "The  Lark's  Nest,"  which 
teaches  the  importance  of  self-reliance.  The  following 
is  the  dramatization: 


^'oung  Larks: 
Old  Lark: 


Farmer: 


^'oung  Larks: 


Old  Lark: 


First   Day 

Peep,  peep,  peep! 

I    must    fly    away    to    get    food.     Be    good 

birdies  and  tell  me  all  that  you  hear  while 

I   am  gone. 
This  grain   is  nearly  ripe.      I    must  get   my 

neighbors  to  help  me  cut  it. 
Oh,   mother,   mother!     Farmer  Brown  says 

he  must  get  his  neighbors  to  help  him  cut 

his  grain.     He  will  cut  our  heacis  off! 
Never  fear,  my  children.     We  are  carefully 

hidden  away.     His  neighbors  are  too  busy. 


Second   Day 

Young  Larks:    Peep,  peep,  peep! 

Old  Lark:  Be  sure  to  tell  me  all  that  you  hear  while  I 

am  gone. 
Farmer:  This  grain  is  getting  very  tall.      I  must  get 

my  cousins  to  help  me  cut  it. 
^'oung  Larks:    Oh,  mother,   mother!     Farmer  Brown  says 

he  must  get  his  cousins  to  help  him  cut 

his  grain. 
Old  Lark:  Never    fear,    my    children.     We    are    safely 

hidden  away.     His  cousins  are  too  busy. 

Third   Day 

^'oung  Larks:    Peep,   peep,   peep! 

Old  Lark:  Be  sure  to  tell  me  all  that  \ou  hear  while  I 

am  gone. 


80 


"Projects" 

Farmer:  This  grain  is  ripe.      I  must  sharpen  my  scythe 

to  cut  the  grain  myself  tomorrow. 

Old  l,ark-  Now,  children,  we  must  be  off,  for  the  grain 

will  surely  be  cut.     Fly  with  me  to  the 
meadow. 


The  story  of  '"The  King  of  Birds"  in  the  Beacon 
Introductory  Second  Reader  furnished  additional  reading 
material  upon  the  subject  of  birds.  In  connection  with 
the  lesson,  we  made  bird  houses  of  bogus  paper  and  mounted 
them  on  standards. 

As  this  was  the  fall  of  the  year,  the  birds  w  ere  fast  dis- 
appearing, and  we  watched  for  flocks  of  blackbirds  and 
swallows.  On  account  of  the  cold  weather  in  our  climate, 
the  birds  cannot  get  sufficient  food,  so  they  migrate  to  the 
South  for  the  winter.  Soon  there  were  no  birds  left  except 
the  chickadee  and  the  sparrow.  We  read  the  story  of 
"The  Snowbird,"  p.  77  in  our  reading  book.  This  led  to 
an  explanation  of  how  birds  keep  warm.  At  Christmas  time 
we  read  the  story  of  "The  Christmas  Bird."  We  planned 
to  make  a  pleasant  Christm.as  for  the  birds  by  hanging  out 
pieces  of  suet  and  by  providing  an  extra  large  meal  for  them. 
After  Christmas  there  were  many  herring  gulls  Hying 
around  our  school,  so  we  had  an  excellent  opportunity  to 
observe  them.  The  main  point  learned  was  the  importance 
of  gulls  as  scavengers. 

With  the  coming  of  the  first  robin  in  spring,  a  great 
deal  of  interest  was  aroused.  Wc  began  a  bird  calendar, 
keeping  a  record  of  the  date  of  the  appearance  of  the  differ- 
ent kinds  of  birds.  We  read  "The  Birds  Nest."  p.  124,  in 
our  regular  reading  book.  The  children  learned  the  story 
of  "The  Robins  Nest,"  in  "Short  Stories  for  Little  I'olks." 
by  Catherine  T.  Brycc.  Interest  was  added  by  comparison 
of  the  nest  of  an  oriole,  a  humming  bird,  and  a  sparrow. 
We  spoke  about  the  care  of  young  birds;  of  the  hard  work 
of  the  parent  birds  to  feed  the  little  birds.  In  this  con- 
nection, I  read  to  the  class,  the  story  of  "Saving  the  Bir*.ls." 
by    James  Bakiwin. 

While  studying  the  woodpecker,  we  learned  the  story 
of  "The  Selfish  Old  Woman,"  who  was  turned  into  a  wood- 
pecker.     In  connection  with  the  bluebird,   we  learned   the 

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Milivaukt'c  Public  Schools 

story  of  "The  I'airy  I  lappincss,"  in  "Nature  Myths,"  by 
Margaret  \V.  Metcalf.  We  made  real  bluebird  houses  at 
the  request  of  the  children  who  brought  all  the  materials 
and  the  tools.  The  houses  were  crude,  but  the  children 
were  proud  of  them. 

We  also  made  a  bird  chart.  The  children  collected 
pictures  from  tablet  covers  and  from  baking  soda  packages. 
In  addition  we  made  bird  booklets.  Each  child  was  sup- 
plied with  a  bird  picture  from  a  Dennison  bird  runner. 
The  children  drew  pictures  of  birds  and  wrote  a  little  story 
about  each.     For  example: 

I   am  a   robin. 

My  head   is  gray. 

My  back  and  wings  are  gray. 

My  breast  is  red. 

I   eat  many  \\orms. 

Occasionally,  when  we  had  a  few  spare  moments,  we 
played  a  bird  game.  Some  bird  pictures  were  placed  upon 
the  blackboard  ledge.  All  the  children  except  one  closed 
their  eyes.  This  child  removed  one  picture.  The  child 
who  named  the  picture  was  privileged  to  remove  the  next 
picture.  After  the  pictures  were  removed,  they  were  re- 
placed by  an  identification  test.  For  instance,  the  leader 
would  say,  "Jack,  get  the  robin,"  or  "Mary,  bring  the 
bluebird." 

The  study  of  birds  proved  to  be  a  great  incentive  to 
reading.  Many  books  containing  bird  stories  were  secured 
from  the  public  library.  W'hen  the  children  had  completed 
their  prescribed  work,  they  were  allowed  to  select  books 
from  our  library  table.  The  following  reference  books 
were  helpful: 


General: 

"Our  Birds  and  Their  Nestlings,"  by  Margaret  Coul- 

son   Walker. 
"Bird  World,"  by  j.   H.  Stickney. 
"Birdies,"   by   Ida  L.  Elson. 
"First  Book  of  Birdies,"  by  01i\-e  Thorne  Miller. 

82 


"  Proiect.s" 


Stories: 

"Nature  Myths,"   h\-   Margaret   W.   Metealf. 

"Elson   First   Reader." 

"  Liasy  Road  to  Reading,  "  Book   I. 

"Beacon  First  Reader." 

"Beacon   Introi^luctory  Second  Reader." 

"Our  Birds  and  Ihcir  Nestlings,"  by  Margaret  Coul- 

son   W  alker. 
"Fifty  Famous  People/'  by  James  Baldwin. 
"Short  Stories  for  Little  F-^olks,"  by  Catherine  T.  Br\cc. 


AN  INDIAN  VILLAGE 

IRENE  GALLAGHER,  Second  Grade,  Cl.arki-:  Stki:i:t  School 


We  aimed  to  make  this  project  a  center  with  which  a 
number  of  the  subjects  in  the  school  curriculum  could  be 
correlated. 

The  following  materials  were  tised:  a  sandtablc.  clay, 
small  sticks,  string,  empty  spools,  small  dollars,  brightly 
colored  cloth,  manila  paper,  crayons,  small  mirrors,  small 
toy  dogs,  canoes,  and  tents. 

The  sandtablc  consisted  of  a  large  woollen  bo,\,  paril\- 
filled  with  sand.  The  bo.\,  which  just  fitted  the  top  of  a 
kindergarten  table,  was  made  by  a  pupils  father.  The 
foundation  for  our  \illage  was  the  sandtablc.  W'c  mouldcLl 
canoes,  firci^Iaces,  and  animal  am.!  Indian  figures  out  of 
cla\ .  The  (ireplaces  were  made  ol  I  wo  poles  of  clay  across 
which  a  twig  was  placed,  j-rom  this  twig  a  clay  kettle 
was  suspended  by  means  of  string.  Under  the  kettle,  small 
sticks  were  laid,  ready  for  the  fire.  Fmpty  spools  made 
good  foLindations  for  the  poles  which  we  could  not  make  to 
standi  alone.  Bows  and  arrows  and  fish  lines  were  also 
made  of  ihe  sticks  and  strings.  An  Indian  chief  was  do- 
nated b\  one  of  I  he  children  and  the  squaws  were  repre- 
sented in  iheir  Indian  blankets  by  dressing  the  little  girls" 
dolls  in  brightly  colored  pieces  of  cloth.  Canoes  and  tents 
were  consirLicted  from  manila  paper.  On  the  tents,  the 
ehillren  drew    brightly  colored   pictures  of  the  moon,  sun. 


83 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

stars  and  animals.  Mirrors  were  used  for  the  lakes  and 
ponds.  The  toy  dogs,  canoes,  and  tents  were  used  as  models 
in  the  construction  of  these  articles  from  clay  and  paper. 

L.anguage,  reading,  arithmetic,  drawing,  and  con- 
struction were  the  subjects  correlated  in  this  project.  For 
language  we  learned  poems  about  the  Indians  and  their 
habits;  we  gathered  pictures  and  used  them  for  picture 
study.  We  also  dramatized  stories  which  were  either  told 
by  the  teacher  or  read  by  the  class.  For  reading,  we  read 
several  books  and  Indian  stories,  some  of  which  are  listed 
below : 

"Hiawatha,"  "The  Horace  Mann  Readers,"  pp.  88-97. 
"An  Honest   Indian,"   "The  Horace  Mann  Readers," 

pp.  33-35. 
"An    Indian   Story,"    "The   Beacon   Second   Reader," 

James  Fassett,  pp.    102-111. 
"Indian  Baskets,"  "Around  the  World,"  Stella  Carroll 

and  Clarence  P".   Carroll,   pp.    103-104. 
"Stories  of  the  Red  Children,"  "Dorothy  Brooks,"  and 
"Yaba,"    "Little  Folks  of  Many  Lands,"   by  Maude 

Chance,  pp.  7-2 1 . 

In  arithmetic,  the  well-known  Mother  Goose  rhyme, 
"Ten  Little  Indians,"  was  a  helpful  device  in  teaching  sub- 
traction. For  drawing,  we  drew  pictures  of  Indian  life, 
using  the  ideas  which  we  had  derived  from  our  Indian 
poems  and  stories.  For  construction,  we  made  the  canoes, 
and  tents  of  paper;  the  fireplaces,  people,  and  animals,  of 
clay;  the  bows  and  arrows  and  fish  lines,  of  twigs  and 
string;  and  the  Indian  blankets  for  the  squaws,  of  cloth 
which  the  children  brought   from  home. 

"Hiawatha,"  is  the  poem  the  children  studied  in- 
tensively. It  is  found  in  "The  Children's  First  Book  of 
Poetry,"  pages  161-165;  "Poems  My  Children  Lo\"e  Best 
of  All,"  by  Clifton  Johnson,  pages  104-105,  and  in  many 
other  books. 

The  titles  of  some  of  the  pictures  used  in  picture  study 
are:  "Wichita  Papoose,"  "Chief  Wolf  Robe  Cheyenne," 
"Broken-arm  Sioux,"  "  InLlian  Warfare,"  "Indian  Chil- 
dren," "The  Pipe  of  Peace,"  "In  a  Canoe,"  "Eagle  breather 
and  Papoose-Siou.x,"  "Evening  on  the  Water,"  "The  Big- 

84 


Projects 

Sea  Water,"  "Papoose  in  its  Cradle,"  "Weapons,"  "An 
Indian  Basket  Exhibit,"  and  several  smaller  pictures  about 
Hiawatha,  which  had  no  titles.  Besides  these  the  children 
brought  many  pictures  which  they  cut  from  old  books. 


ROBINSON  CRUSOE 

KATE  C.  McC'.ABE,  Si;cond  Gradf,  Eiciitii  Si iuu-.t  School 


The  story  of  Robinson  Crusoe,  which  is  told  very 
bricdy  in  one  of  the  prescribed  reading  lessons  for  the 
Second  Grade,  proved  to  be  so  interesting  to  the  pupils 
that  they  were  eager  to  know  more  about  the  adventures 
of  this  sailor.  In  order  to  have  the  children  comprehend 
the  problems  which  confronted  Robinson  Crusoe,  the 
teacher  decided  to  let  the  children  construct  a  miniature 
island  on  a  sandtable. 

I'ortunatcly  a  sandtable  was  secured,  and,  in  a  \cry 
short  time,  it  was  filled  with  a  good  mi.xture  of  garden  soil 
and  sand,  brought  by  the  children.  With  some  suggestions 
from  the  teacher,  the  conformation  of  the  island  was  effected. 
Some  masses  of  broken  cement,  found  in  the  neighborhood, 
served  as  a  foundation  for  the  "high  places  '  on  the  island, 
and  pieces  of  win^low  glass,  placed  ox'cr  clean  sand,  repre- 
sented the  sea.  White  sand,  some  snail  shells,  and  a  few 
pebbles  from  the  beach  at  Lake  Michigan,  made  a  very 
realistic  l^'Cach.  The  chiklren  then  scattered  grass  seed 
ON  cr  the  surface  of  the  island  and  covcreci  it  lightly  with 
earth.  ThcN'  then  put  twigs  of  lilac  and  willow  into  the 
ground  to  represent  trees.  The  grounv.1  was  thoroughly 
sprinkUxl;  the  table  was  placed  where  the  sun  would  shine 
upon  it,  aixl,  in  a  few  days,  the  island  was  bright  green. 

i)ni:  afternoon,  as  the  children  were  gathered  about  the 
island,  their  teacher  said,  "Let  us  play  that  there  will  be  a 
great  storm  at  sea  tonight  and,  ma\be,  Robinson  (jusoe 
will  be  here  tomorrow  mc^-ning,  resting  on  the  beach,  after 
his  struggle  in  the  water.  "  This  suggestion  was  enthusi- 
astically received,  and,  when  upon  the  opening  of  school 
next  morning,  a  little  figure  in  a  blue  sailor  suit  was  foun*.! 
on  the  shore,  there  was  great  joy.  The  children  in\iied 
their  brothers  and  sisters  to  sec  Robinson  C-rusoc  on  his 

85 


Miiiraukee  Public  Schools 

islatxi.  Many  oT  th<-'  c)lJcr  children  became  so  interested 
that  they  made  daily  visits  to  observe  progress,  and  they 
considered  it  a  privilege  to  be  permitted  to  add  something 
of  interest   to  the  landscape. 

Robinson  Crusoe  was  made  to  walk  about  the  shore 
and  to  climb  a  hill.  Before  the  close  of  school  in  the  after- 
noon, he  was  placed  in  the  branches  of  a  tree  where  he  slept 
during  the  night.  When  he  awoke,  he  saw  the  waves  were 
still  and  that  the  broken  ship  (represented  by  a  little  pile 
of  pine  splinters)  was  not  far  off.  To  reach  the  ship,  a  raft 
was  necessary.  The  problem  was  solved  by  a  little  boy 
who  constructed  a  raft  by  using  the  cover  of  a  chalk  box. 
Robinson  Crusoe  made  several  trips  on  his  raft  to  the 
wrecked  ship,  bringing  a  number  of  things — boxes,  tools, 
canvas,  a  small  dog,  two  cats,  books,  a  hammock,  and  a 
bag  of  gold.  The  children  showed  much  ingenuity  in 
making  many  of  these  objects.  The  boys  whittled  several 
small  guns,  a  hatchet,  and  a  spade,  and  some  little  girls 
made  a  tent  of  canvas.  In  the  construction  of  the  stockade, 
small  bark-covered  twigs  were  pointed  and  were  pressed 
closely  together  into  the  ground.  The  wall  around  the 
tent  was  built  as  a  further  means  of  protection.  This, 
however,  made  necessary  the  construction  of  a  ladder. 
After  several  unsuccessful  efTorts,  a  neat  ladder  was  finally 
made  by  one  of  the  boys. 

At  the  suggestion  of  the  children,  a  spring  was  made  by 
pressing  into  the  soft  ground  a  small  ink-well  filled  with 
water.  Small  scraps  of  fur,  donated  by  the  children,  rep- 
resented the  skins  of  animals.  A  small  enclosure,  made  of 
tiny  twigs,  confined  several  little  white  goats.  Barley  was 
planted  and  clay  dishes  were  made.  Crusoe's  calendar 
consisted  of  a  small  post  bearing  notches  to  record  the 
days.  Crusoe's  sailor  suit  was  replaced  by  one  of  fur. 
(As  the  children  were  not  able  to  make  this  suit,  it  was 
presented  by  the  teacher.) 

The  story  was  worked  out  chapter  by  chapter.  The 
trip  to  the  other  side  of  the  island  was  made.  The  chil- 
dren prepared  a  great  surprise  for  Robinson  Crusoe  by 
loading  the  trees  and  vines  with  fruit  and  making  a  sort  of 
Jungle  with  a  few  wild  animals  hiding  in  the  tall  grass. 
Crusoe  finds  the  fruit  and  a  parrot.  He  needs  baskets  for 
his  fruit  and  baskets  of  the  proper  size  are  secured.  He 
becomes   frightened   by   the  appearance  of  a   footprint   in 

86 


"Projects" 

the  sand.  Friday  comes  to  the  island  and  becomes  Crusoe's 
companion  and  servant.  At  length  a  merchant  ship  ap- 
pears at  sea.  The  captain  comes  to  shore  and  is  enter- 
tained by  Robinson  Crusoe.  Upon  the  invitation  of  the 
captain,  Robinson  Crusoe,  Friday,  and  the  parrot  accom- 
pany him  to  England.  (The  merchant  ship  was  the  gift 
of  a  boy  of  the  Eighth  Grade,  who  made  a  sailboat  of  the 
proper  proportions.)  After  his  many  adventures,  Robinson 
Crusoe  finds  great  happiness  in  returning  to  his  old  home. 

The    following    analysis    of    the    project    indicates    its 
motixation  of  the  course  of  studv: 


Reading: 

A.  Supplementar\-  books: 

"Robinson  Crusoe,  "  bv  Cowles — Flanagan 
&  Co. 

"Robinson  Crusoe  for  Boys  and  Girls,"'  by 
Lida  B.  McMurry — Public  School  Pub- 
lishing Co. 

B.  Periodicals: 

"Crusoe's  Islet  to  be  Health  Resort,"' — 
(Sunday  Sentinel.  .-Xpril    10.) 

Spelling — Words  properly   used   in   the  context     raft, 
stockade,  etc. 


Geography: 

A.  Field  trips: 

1.  Visit   to  the   beach. 

2.  Visit  to  Washington  Park  "Zoo." 

B.  Developed  by  the  story: 

1 .  Meaning  of  geographical  terms     island, 
climate,  spring,  etc. 

2.  Use    of    a    map — location    of    Crusoe's 

island,   l:nglani.l.   etc. 


IV.     Language: 

A.       Increasing  Nocabulary 
.S7 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

B.  Replying  to  questions. 

C.  Reproducing  portions  of  the  narrative. 

D.  AlTorJing  opportunity  for  natural  oral  expression 

in  the  making  of  plans. 


V.     Arithmetic: 


Use  of  Crusoe  s  calendar: 

7  days  make  a  week. 
52  weeks  make  a  year. 


THE  CIRCUS,  No.  I 

FLORENCE  CAVANEY,  Second  Grade,  Clarke  Street  School 


The  circus  was  chosen  as  a  project  because  of  its  interest 
to  children  and  its  adaptability  to  the  school  curriculum. 
Both  country  and  city  children  are  familiar  with  the  circus. 
Every  child  enjoys  the  animals,  the  bands,  and  the  clowns. 

The  study  of  the  circus  is  especially  valuable  in  teach- 
ing reading  and  language  because  there  are  many  interest- 
ing animal  stories.  The  "Circus  Reader"  formed  a  basis 
for  the  reading  work.  The  children  knew  the  names  of 
the  animals  and  so  they  needed  to  learn  only  their  printed 
forms.  In  addition  to  the  "Circus  Reader,"  we  read  the 
story  of  the  circus  in  the  "Wide-Awake  Readers,"  and 
short  stories  from  other  supplementary  readers. 

In  construction,  the  first  step  was  the  collecting  of 
materials.  The  children  brought  all  sorts  of  toy  animals 
(iron,  wooden,  paper,  and  celluloid)  which  the>'  could  find 
at  home.  They  also  collected  animal  pictures  from  maga- 
zines and  old  picture  books.  Then  they  brought  colored 
yarn  and  boxes  of  different  sizes  for  the  circus  wagons.  We 
began  our  construction  work  by  making  paper  elephants, 
because  the  elephant  seemed  to  be  the  most  popular  animal. 
The  children  made  the  elephants  of  gray  paper  by  using 
patterns.  After  cutting  the  outline,  the  children  used 
black  crayon  to  make  the  eyes  and  the  ears. 


"Projects" 

The  same  method  was  used  in  constructing  the  rest 
of  the  animals  (bears,  tigers,  camels,  zebras,  giraffes,  mon- 
keys, donkeys,  and  horses),  with  the  exception  that  maniia 
paper  was  used.  This  required  the  children  to  use  crayons 
to  color  the  entire  animal.  We  also  used  sets  of  jointed 
animals  as  patterns.  After  cutting  the  outline,  the  chil- 
dren put  the  parts  together  by  means  of  wire  shanks. 

In  making  the  clowns,  the  children  had  a  choice  of 
three  patterns.  They  showed  their  taste  for  bright  colors 
by  using  the  brightest  colors  that  they  could  find.  After 
the  animals  and  the  clowns  were  completed,  the  children 
began  the  construction  of  the  wagons,  made  of  shoe  boxes 
with  the  bottoms  removed.  The  boxes  were  colored  with 
red,  yellow,  and  orange  paper,  two  or  three  colors  being 
used  on  each  wagon.  The  little  girls  then  strung  the  boxes 
from  top  to  bottom  with  \arn  to  represent  the  bars  of  the 
cages.  Meanwhile,  the  little  boys  were  busy,  making 
wheels  for  the  wagons.  The  wheels  were  made  of  card- 
board, covered  with  colored  paper.  Besides  the  animal 
cages,  the  children  made  a  larger  wagon  for  the  band  and 
a  chariot  for  one  of  the  clowns.  One  little  girl  suggested 
that  we  have  some  ladies  riding  horseback  as  she  had  seen 
in  the  parades.  So  she  brought  two  celluloid  dolls  which 
she  dressed  in  red  crepe  paper  costumes  ani.1  mounted  the 
ladies  on  horses.  Another  child  suggested  plumes  for  the 
horses"  heads,  so  plumes  were  made  of  red  and  >ellow  tissue 
paper. 

Then  the  parade  was  assembled.  The  wheels  were 
put  on  the  wagons  by  means  of  colored  slats,  the  animals 
were  put  into  their  wagons,  to  which  horses  were  attached 
by  using  colored  slats.  P'our  horses  were  attached  to  the 
band  wagon,  and  a  donkey  to  the  chief  clowns  chariot. 
Numerous  clowns  of  less  importance  rode  donkeys.  The 
chiklren  arranged  the  entire  grand  parade  and  were  so 
delighted  with  it  that  they  were  eager  to  have  others  sec 
it. 

In  addition  to  the  construction  work,  the  study  of  the 
circus  embraced  the  singing  of  the  "Clown  Songs,"  and 
songs  about  animals.  The  children  also  enjoyed  a  singing 
game  called  the  "Circus."  The  study  of  the  circus  gave 
zest  to  the  language  work.  Besides  the  informal  oral  work 
and  the  reproduction  of  animal  stories,  the  language  les- 
sons included  useful  geographical  information  The  study 
of  the  camel   is  here  cited  as  an   illustration: 

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Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

The  Camel 

There  are  two  kinds  of  camels,  some 
having  two  humps,  others  having  only  one. 
The  camel,  which  is  known  as  the  "Ship  of 
the  Desert,"  is  a  very  ugly-looking  animal. 
It  is,  however,  very  useful.  Without  it,  the 
Arabs  would  not  be  able  to  cross  the  desert. 
Its  wide,  clumsy  feet,  do  not  sink  into  the 
sand,  and  the  thick  soles  protect  the  feet  from 
the  burning  heat.  Its  eyes  are  provided  with 
long  lashes  which  protect  them  from  the  sun's 
rays.  The  camel  can  also  close  its  nostrils  at 
will,  when  the  sharp  sand  is  blown  by  the 
wind.  The  camel  can  live  on  very  little  food 
because  its  hump  is  a  storehouse  of  fat  from 
which  its  body  is  supplied  when  it  crosses  the 
desert.  The  stomach  of  the  camel  is  also  so 
formed  that  it  can  carry  enough  water  to 
last  a  week.  Sometimes,  when  the  water  of 
a  caravan  gives  out,  some  of  the  camels  are 
killed  to  get  the  water  supply.  The  camel 
lives  thirty  or  forty  years.  In  the  beginning 
of  the  summer,  the  long  woolly  hair  of  the 
camel  becomes  loose,  and  it  is  easily  pulled 
away  from  the  skin.  From  these  hairs,  the 
Arab  weaves  several  kinds  of  cloth,  some  of 
which  he  uses  for  clothing. 

As  further  preparation  for  the  study  of  geography, 
the  circus  animals  were  classified  according  to  the  temper- 
ature belts  of  the  countries  in  w  hich  they  live.  The  circus 
project  proved  to  be  both  enjoyable  and  instructive. 


THE  CIRCUS,  No.  2 

MINNIE  L.  SUCKOW,  S[;c.ond  Grade,  H.\rtford  .Avenue 

SCHCIOL 


The  idea  of  the  circus  started  when  the  song  "The 
Clown"  (Progressive  Series,  Book  I,  page  30)  was  taught. 
While  the  song  does  not  mention  a  circus,  the  clown,  being 
associated  with  one,  suggested  the  idea.     The  thought  of 

90 


^^  Projects" 

the  song  was  so  obvious  that  no  discussion  was  necessary 
to  explain  its  meaning.  The  day  after  the  song  was  intro- 
duced, a  child  brought  a  toy  clown  and  a  circus  animal, 
and,  without  saying  a  word,  placed  them  upon  the  teacher's 
table.  No  comment  was  made  by  the  teacher.  Another 
child  brought  a  few  circus  animals  which  were  added  to  the 
first  contribution.  This  stimulated  great  interest  and 
soon  many  of  the  children  asked  if  they  might  bring  their 
animals  and  clowns.  By  degrees,  a  very  fine,  complete, 
and  varied  circus  was  collected,  even  to  a  toy  stage  and  tent 
with  trapeze  performers  which  covered  the  teachers  long 
table  and  a  smaller  one.  l^ach  day  the  children  arranged 
their  respective  toys  with  the  aid  of  assistants  from  the 
class.  Thus  nearly  every  child  had  an  opportimity  to 
express  his  idea  of  a  circus. 

The  lesson,  "The  Animal  Show,"  page  130  of  the  Bald- 
win an^l  Bender  Second  Reader,  was  read  with  keen  interest 
.uul  a  great  ^ieal  of  expression  because  of  the  close  associa- 
tion with  the  toy  circus.  The  children  brought  books 
about  animals  and  the  circus.  Those  simple  enough  for 
the  chiklrcn  to  read  by  themselves  were  placed  at  the  back 
of  the  room  where  they  could  be  freely  used  after  the  as- 
signed seat  work  had  been  completed.  "Tum  Tum.  the 
jolly  lilephant,"  and  "Squinty,  the  Comical  Pig."  were 
reacl  to  the  class  by  the  teacher  and  the  best  rea*.lers  in  the 
class. 

In  the  language  period  an  oppoilunity  was  gi\en  each 
chiki  to  tell  his  experience  with  the  real  circus.  1  his 
brought  forth  spontaneous  expression,  as  all  talk  fluently 
on  a  subject  of  such  universal  interest  as  a  circus.  1  he 
following  guessing  game  was  also  played :  A  child  w  as  chosen 
to  imitate  the  actions  of  an  animal  and  the  language  or  cry 
if  possible.  The  successful  guesser  took  his  turn  at  repre- 
senting an  animal.  This  game  proved  of  never-failing 
interest. 

The  desire  to  know  the  names  of  all  the  animals  was 
expressed  and  the  teacher  placc^l  them  upon  the  blackboarLl. 
a  lew  at  a  time,  as  they  were  spelled  by  the  chiklren  with 
no  aid  from  the  teacher.  Sometimes  days  passed  before 
the  correct  spelling  of  one  of  the  harder  names  was  given. 
The  children  huntCLJ  for  the  names  in  books,  asked  their  par- 
ents how  to  spell  them,  and,  in  some  instances,  they  could 
tell  the  spelling  by  the  sount.1.     The  chiklren  compiled  the 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

following  list,  which  incluJes  some  animals  not  commonly 
associated  with  a  circus:  i3ear,  goat,  lion,  dog,  elephant, 
tiger,  donkey,  horse,  duck,  seal,  camel,  monkey,  pig,  cow, 
deer,  giraffe,  kid,  sheep,  zebra,  cat,  pony,  polar  bear,  mule, 
frog,  buffalo,  hippopotamus,  rabbit,  walrus,  owl,  mouse, 
hen,   fox,   wolf,  rat  and  squirrel. 

Animals  were  painted  in  silhouette,  cut  from  black- 
coated  paper  and  mounted.  Ihey  were  also  drawn  with 
colored  crayon.  Clay  modelling  was  then  attempted. 
The  first  lesson  resulted  in  only  two  specimens  which  re- 


THE   CIRCUS 

Second  Grade — Hartford  Avenue  School 


semblcd  real  animals  and  were  worth  prcser\ing.  Each 
lesson  showed  decided  progress  and  yielded  an  increasing 
number  of  good  reproductions  until  finally  each  child  had 
made  a  model  that  \\as  easily  recognized.  Some  of  the 
results  were  exceptionally  good  and  showed  that  a  few  of 
the  >"Outhful  modellers  possessed  real  talent. 

The  carts  for  the  parade  were  of  two  sizes.  The 
smaller  was  made  of  match  boxes  while  the  larger  was  de- 
veloped as  a  class  exercise  from  bogus  paper.  While  the 
basic    idea    was    the    same,    the   development    was   original 

92 


'^  Projects" 

and  no  two  carts,  when  finished,  were  just  alike.  Milk 
bottle  tops  were  used  for  wheels.  The  band  wagon  was 
community  work.  That  was  made  out  of  a  shoe  bo.\  with 
the  cover  raised  high  on  sticks  at  the  four  corners.  The 
children  cut  figures  representing  the  players  with  the  various 
instruments  and  colored  them  red  with  black  trimmings, 
the  band  uniform.  The  last  seat  was  occupied  by  the 
drummers  with  their  traps.  The  other  two  seats  were  filled 
with  the  players  of  the  brass  instruments  and  a  dapper 
director,  waving  his  baton,  stood  in  front.  The  LJrixcrs  for 
the  carts  were  also  cut  from  bogus  paper  an^l  colored  red 
and  black.  The  harnessing  of  the  clay  horses  to  the  carts 
was  very  original.  Each  child  had  his  own  idea  of  how  it 
should  be  done  and  the  expression  represented  all  stages 
from  the  most  simple  to  very  elaborate. 

Spectators,  all  sizes  and  descriptions,  were  cut  for  the 
parade  from  bogus  paper  and  colored.  Here  again,  origi- 
nality was  displayed  in  devices  for  making  the  paper  people 
stand  and  also  in  the  color  scheme  of  the  costuming. 

The  circus  parade  was  arranged  on  tables  placed  close 
to  each  other  and  against  the  wall.  The  spectators,  several 
rows  Llcep,  lined  the  wall.  The  carts  with  animals  inside, 
were  placed  according  to  size,  the  smallest  in  front  and 
ihe  largest,  the  band  wagon,  bringing  up  the  rear.  '1  he 
elephants,  camels,  and  some  other  animals,  walke^l  beside 
the  cages  as  is  usually  the  case  in  a  real  circus. 

Unlagging  interest  was  maintained  throughout  the 
elevelopment  of  the  circus.  Possibilities  of  continuing  the 
project  indefinitely  along  different  avenues  presentev.1  thenv 
selves,  but  the  school  year  drew  to  a  close  and  consequently 
the  ideas  were  not  followed  out.  The  greatest  gain  for 
I  he  class  was  the  opportLmiiN  for  original  expression  and 
the  natural  unfolding  of  ideas.  There  was  nothing  cut 
anel  Llric^l  or  forced  about  it,  but  spontaneit\'  of  thought 
or  of  action   was  allowxxi   full   plav. 


93 


Miiivaukee  Public  Schools 


A  SANDTABLE  DESERT 

J.\  ILSi'.l  IRICH,  Third  GRAor-:  "A,"  Fourteenth 
Street  Sciiof)L 


Stories  of  the  desert  seem  to  possess  a  weird  fascination 
for  many  children.  While  studying  about  the  wonders  of 
the  vast  sand  areas  called  deserts,  one  of  the  boys  suggested 
making  a  desert  on  a  sandtable.  As  our  room  was  not 
supplied  with  a  sandtable,  we  decided  to  use  a  suit  box 
as  a  substitute. 

The  necessary  sand  was  readily  furnished  by  the  chil- 
dren. Then  followed  donations  of  toy  camels  and  tiny 
Arab  dolls  which  had  been  purchased  from  a  "Five  and  Ten 
Cent  Store."  The  problem  of  dressing  the  dolls  was  under- 
taken by  the  girls,  who  worked  very  hard  making  white 
and  colored  robes  and  tiny  turbans.  In  order  to  indicate 
an  oasis,  it  become  necessary  to  provide  palm  trees.  What 
could  we  use  for  the  long  slender  trunks^  The  answer 
was  lollipop  and  tinker  toy  sticks.  Wound  with  dark 
green  crepe  paper  and  terminating  in  a  feathery  head 
of  paper  leaves,  the  palms  were  quite  realistic.  In  the 
construction  of  a  tent,  the  lollipop  sticks  again  proved  to 
be  of  service,  and  a  piece  of  brown  crash  made  a  fine  camels 
hair  cover.  Little  utensils  were  modeled  from  clay  and 
tiny  paper  baskets  were  also  constructed.  A  little  mirror 
produced  the  illusion  of  spring  water.  A  number  of  tiny 
pictures  of  camels  cut  out  and  pasted  on  the  horizon  repre- 
sented a  caravan  crossing  the  desert.  Judging  from  the 
pride  which  the  class  took  in  their  miniature  desert,  the 
project  was  a  great  success. 


THE  MODEL  STORE 

LIND.\  H.ANSEN,  Third  Gr.-\de,  Scott  Street  School 


The  equipment  for  the  store  is  supplied,  free  of  charge, 
to  any  school,  by  the  publishers  of  Educational  Founda- 
tions (an  educational  journal).  A  request  for  the  equip- 
ment should  be  addressed  as  follows: 


94 


"Projects" 

Educational  Foundations, 

Model  Store-Keeping  Department, 
Chapin  &  O'Donnell,  Organizers, 
33   East  27th  St.,  New  York. 

The  equipment  consists  of  real  branded  boxes,  cans, 
etc.,  which,  because  of  their  close  relation  to  each  child's 
experience,  create  immediate  interest.  How  the  children 
do  love  to  buy  Jiffy  Jell,  chocolate  bars  or  m.olasses  and  soda 
for  the  gingerbread  which  they  greatly  relish!  Toy  money  is 
also  provided,  and  a  manual  giving  type  lessons  for  all 
grades  accompanies  the  equipment. 

The  model  store  can  be  used  to  greatest  adxantage  by 
keeping  it  in  a  place  accessible  to  all  classes.  For  this 
reason,  we  chose  a  corridor  which  was  not  used  as  a  passage 
way.  This  location  also  enabled  us  to  avoid  violations 
of  the  fire  ordinance  relative  to  obstructions  in  corridors. 
The  fixtures,  consisting  of  shelves  and  a  counter,  were  made 
by  the  woodworking  class  of  the  manual  training  depart- 
ment. Long,  narrow  shelves  are  desirable.  A  depth  of 
six  inches  provides  enough  space  for  the  largest  articles  in 
stock,  and  a  length  of  twenty  feet  gi\es  ample  room  for 
conxenicnt  and  pleasing  arrangement  of  material.  It 
also  allows  space  for  more  than  one  clerk  and  one  bu\cr  to 
conduct  business  at  the  same  time.  The  counter  is  ex- 
tended from  the  shelves  and  is  fastened  by  hinges,  so  that 
w  hen  it  is  not  in  use,  it  can  be  lowered  and  hooked  back  to 
the  wall.  The  legs  of  the  counter,  also,  are  fastened  with 
hinges,  and  fold  up  against  the  lower  side  of  the  counter, 
so  that  when  the  counter  is  lowered  and  hooked  back,  the 
supports  are  not  visible. 

1  he  model  store  proxides  purposeful  ucti\it\'  lor  most 
branches  constituting  the  school  program  of  the  third  year 
class.  Its  most  obvious  use  is  in  the  teaching  of  arithmetic, 
but  its  value  in  teaching  construction,  language,  spelling, 
writing,  reading,  geography,  drawing,  and  citizenship,  soon 
l^ccomes  apparent.  In  arithmetic,  addition  is  made  con- 
crete by  having  the  pupils  find  the  total  cost  of  their  pur- 
chase without  handling  the  money.  In  beginning  the 
multiplication  tables,  the  stock  illustrated  the  product  of 
two  numbers;  for  instance,  in  determining  how  many 
single  cans  arc  equal  to  six  groups  of  four  cans  each.  An- 
other means  of  ilkistrating  the  product  consisted  in  sending 

05 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

six  children  to  the  store,  each  child  purchasing  four  articles. 
Practice  in  addition  was  afforded  by  finding  the  total 
amount  of  the  purchases. 

In  relating  their  purchases,  the  chiklren  unconsciously 
state  a  simple  problem,  bor  example:  "I  bought  some 
gum.  It  was  five  cents  per  package,  and,  as  I  bought  four 
packages,  I  paid  four  times  as  much,  or  twenty  cents." 
One  day,  I  expressed  a  desire  to  have  all  the  games  in  the 
model  store.  The  children  purchased  them  and  presented 
them  to  me.  We  then  tied  the  games  in  bundles  of  three, 
and  found  how  many  threes  could  be  made  from  a  given 
number.  Exercises  in  dividing  the  games  among  the 
children  illustrated  the  process  of  uneven,  or  inexact, 
division. 

A  need  arose  for  knowledge  of  denominate  numbers. 
Some  children  wished  to  purchase  milk  by  the  quart  or  by 
the  pint.  The  use  of  ^  and  >^  was  required  in  purchasing 
less  than  a  dozen  of  eggs.  The  children  became  interested 
in  weights  and  noticed  the  scales  in  stores.  They  discov- 
ered that  the  scale  registered  weight  less  than  a  pound,  and 
the  subject  of  ounces  was  introduced.  The  children  became 
familiar  with  the  new  term  by  reading  the  net  weight 
marked  on  cans  and  packages. 

In  using  toy  money  to  pay  for  purchases,  the  children 
soon  saw  the  necessity  as  buyers  of  being  able  to  find  the 
amount  of  the  bill  in  order  to  receive  the  correct  change. 
The  pupils  who  could  make  change  rapidly  and  accurately 
were  selected  as  storekeepers.  When  the  amount  of  the 
purchase  was  too  large  to  be  calculated  mentally,  the  neces- 
sity for  written  work  was  evident.  With  increase  in  busi- 
ness, a  cashier  and  a  bookkeeper  were  chosen,  and  accounts 
were  checked  at  the  close  of  the  clay.  The  proper  transac- 
tion of  business  necessitated  a  thorough  knowledge  of 
United  States  currency.  After  operating  our  model  store, 
I  chose  similar  problems  from  a  book  to  determine  whether 
any  power  had  been  gained  through  the  concrete  work. 
The  results  were,  indeed,  gratifying. 

The  toy  mone\-  which  forms  a  part  of  the  equipment 
is  printed  upon  sheets  of  cardboard,  and  must  be  cut  out 
before  it  can  be  used,  and  the  necessity  for  labor  in  obtain- 
ing real  money  was  discussed.  The  cartons,  also,  required 
some  labor,  as  they  needed  to  be  folded  and  pasted  before 

96 


"  Projects" 

ihey  were  ready  for  use.  Some  of  the  children  wished  to 
make  similar  boxes.  In  order  to  carry  out  their  project, 
they  realized  the  necessity  of  using  rulers.  We  estimated 
the  size  of  various  containers,  and  then  tested  the  accuracy 
of  our  estimates. 

In  addition  to  the  work  in  arithmetic,  the  model  store 
save  much  opportunity  for  self-e.xpression  in  English. 
Realizing  that  a  courteous  merchant  secures  greater  patron- 
age, the  embryo  merchants  cultivated  the  habit  of  greeting 
their  customers  in  a  pleasant  manner.  When  business  was 
not  too  pressing,  they  also  discussed  questions  of  current 
interest  in  imitation  of  adults.  A  motive  for  w  rittcn  work 
was  pro\ided  in  acknow  ledging  the  receipt  of  new  stock. 

An  incentive  to  wider  reading  was  furnished  in  dis- 
cussing the  qualifications  of  a  good  salesman.  He  must 
know  the  source  of  the  material  and  why  his  goods  are 
superior.  In  this  connection  the  children  read  interesting 
articles  on  the  story  of  gum  for  group  reading. 

A  model  store  requires  attention  to  neatness  and  clean- 
liness. By  keeping  the  store  in  proper  condition,  the 
children  acquired  habits  of  order  and  cleanliness,  f-rom 
an  educational  point  of  view,  the  operation  of  the  model 
store  pro\ed  to  be  an  enjoyable  as  well  as  a  profitable 
means  of  instruction. 


THE  STORY  OF  WHEAT 

.AGNES  KI'I.1.1;Y,  Sixxind  Grade  "A"  and  Iiiikd  Gradf:  "B. 
Walker  Street  School 


Geography  in  the  Third  Grade  means  little  to  the  aver- 
age child  if  taken  up  in  the  usual  way.  It  does  not  interest 
him  nor  appeal  to  him  unless  he  finds  in  it  something  that 
he  can  correlate  with  his  dail>'  experience.  He  will  learn 
that  he  lives  in  the  North  Temperate  Zone  and  that  wheat 
is  one  of  the  principal  products  of  this  rone.  This  docs 
not  really  mean  much  to  him  until  he  can  apply  this  know  I- 
edge  to  some  actual  experience  of  his  own  The  average 
city  chiki  may  know  that  bread  is  made  from  wheat.  Some 
children  ina\  ha\c  sccti  wheat  grains  used  as  chicken  feed 
at   home,    but    1    doubt    if  \cry   many   know   how    wheat   is 

07 


Miliraiikec  Public  Schools 

planted,  harvested  or  threshed.  This  is  especially  true  of 
children  in  the  foreign  districts  who  spend  their  vacations 
on  the  city  streets,  with  no  opportunity  to  go  to  the  country. 
For  this  reason  I  decided  to  take  "The  Story  of  Wheat," 
develop  it  from  the  planting  of  the  seeds  to  the  actual 
baking  of  a  loaf  of  bread. 

We  di\ided  our  project  into  four  parts: 

1.  Planting,  which  comprised: 

a.  Plowing. 

b.  Harrowing  or  dragging. 

c.  Seeding. 

d.  Rolling. 

2.  Harvesting,  which  comprised: 

a.  Reaping. 

b.  Threshing. 

3.  Milling,  which  comprised: 

a.  Grinding. 

b.  Sifting. 

4.  Baking. 

The  first  part  was  not  difficult  to  develop  in  a  simple 
way.  One  of  the  boys  brought  a  large  wooden  box  from 
home.  Another  had  a  coaster  and  said  that  if  some  of 
the  boys  would  help  him,  he  would  bring  the  soil.  E\eryone 
wanted  to  help,  so  three  or  four  boys  went  with  him  and 
we  soon  had  more  soil  than  we  needed. 

One  of  the  little  girls  said  she  knew  a  man  who  kept  a 
feed  store  and  was  sure  she  could  bring  somiC  wheat.  Others 
who  had  chickens  brought  a  little,  too.  In  this  way  we 
obtained  our  seeds.  We  wet  the  ground  and  let  it  dry 
thoroughly  till  it  was  hard. 

The  children  knew  that  spring  is  the  best  time  to  plant 
the  seeds,  although  we  spoke  of  winter  wheat  as  well.  By 
questioning,  it  became  clear  that  after  the  cold  winter,  the 
ground  is  not  ready  to  recei\e  the  seeds.  Then  the  plow- 
was  introduced.  The  reasons  given  by  the  children  for 
the  use  of  the  plow  were:  first,  to  cut  up  the  ground  and 
make  it  soft,  and  second,  to  turn  under  the  dry  grass. 

When  we  had  discussed  the  farmer's  method  of  pre- 
paring his  ground,  we  tried  to  follow  the  same  plan  in  our 

98 


"Projects" 

"miniature  field."  We  could  not  use  a  plow,  so  we  took 
an  old  knife.  While  it  did  not  make  the  furrows  as  a  plow- 
really  does,  still  it  answered  the  purpose.  Se\eral  of  the 
children  cut  up  the  ground  in  rows,  while  the  others  w  atche^l. 
The  ground  was  rough,  and  there  were  several  large  lumps. 
It  took  very  little  suggestion  from  me  to  bring  out  the  fact 
that  these  lumps  should  be  broken  and  the  surface  made 
even.  This  they  did  with  a  small  rake  w  hich  someone  had 
brought  from  home. 

Our  ground  was  now  ready  for  the  seeds.  We  made 
rows  with  a  ruler  and  each  child  in  the  room  planted  a  few- 
grains  of  the  wheat.  We  talked  of  the  \'ery  large  fields  a 
farmer  has,  and  the  children  of  their  own  accord  decided 
it  would  be  to  his  advantage  to  use  machines  for  all  these 
processes.  At  this  time  a  boy  from  Montana  entered  the 
class.  He  had  lived  on  a  large  farm  and  was  familiar  with 
the  different  machines.  He  told  the  children  just  how  his 
father  had  done  the  same  things  they  had  done,  only  he 
had  used  machines.  He  told  the  name  of  each  machine, 
how  it  looked,  and  how  it  worked.  Because  his  story 
related  his  own  experience  it  impressed  his  listeners. 

I  encouraged  the  children  to  find  pictures  of  the  differ- 
ent machines  in  magazines  and  catalogues  and  it  was  sur- 
prising how-  many  really  good  pictures  they  found.  Some 
of  the  children  could  not  get  any  pictures,  because,  being 
foreigners,  and  of  the  poorer  class,  there  were  no  magazines 
in  the  home.  The  other  children,  w  ho  were  more  fortunate, 
gladly  supplied  them. 

We  planted  our  seeds  on  Thursda\ .  We  ha\e  a  west 
room  where  there  is  plenty  of  sun  and  by  keeping  our  '"  w  heat 
dckl"'  near  the  heat,  our  wheat  had  appeared  above  the 
ground  when  we  came  on  Monday  morning.  The  children 
were  very  enthusiastic  and  carefully  watched  its  progress 
each  da\-.  rhc\-  cxen  took  a  ruler  and  mcasure^l  it  Ircmi 
time  to  time. 

liach  child  wrote  a  xery  short  story,  three  or  four  sen- 
tences in  some  cases,  about  planting  the  wheat,  and  used 
the  pictures  they  had  to  illustrate  it.  (^f  course,  our  wheat 
is  not  rcuLk  to  harvest,  but  we  are  talking  about  the 
farmer  s  mcthoi.1  of  har\-esting  -  how-  he  uses  a  binder. 
which  cuts  the  grain  and  binds  it  at  the  same  time:  how  he 
sets   four  or   fi\e   bunLJles   together   to   make  a  shock,   and 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

finally',  how  he  threshes  it.  Again  the  children  searched 
for  pictures  of  binders  and  threshing  machines  which  they 
used  to  illustrate  the  second  chapter  of  their  story. 

If  our  wheat  ripens  we  shall  harxest  it  as  well  as  we  can. 
We  shall  cut  it  and  tie  it  into  bundles,  standing  them  up 
in  shocks  and  finally  threshing  it  by  the  old  flail  method 
if  no  better  way  suggests  itself. 

Then  by  using  an  old  coffee  mill  or  a  food  chopper,  we 
shall  grind  it  into  flour,  very  coarse  at  first  and  gradually 
finer.  Then  we  shall  sift  it  and  it  will  be  ready  for  use. 
We  are  going  to  try  to  make  a  loaf  of  bread  and  bake  it. 
The  children  love  to  take  part  in  any  activity.  As  we  are 
not  trying  to  obtain  perfect  results,  I  shall  let  the  pupils  do 
the  actual  mixing  and  measuring  with  just  a  suggestion 
when  it  is  needed. 

Then  the  most  enjoyable  part  of  all — the  eating. 
What  child  does  not  take  pleasure  in  eating  what  he  has 
made  himself,  regardless  of  the  degree  of  excellence.  True, 
each  child  will  receive  only  a  small  portion,  but  the  pleasure 
he  will  derive  cannot  be  measured  by  the  size  of  the  piece. 

If  it  were  possible  I  should  like  very  much  to  take  the 
children  to  a  farm  where  they  could  really  see  the  different 
processes,  and  later  to  the  mill  where  they  could  see  just 
how  the  wheat  is  ground  into  flour,  but,  just  at  present,  I 
do  not  see  how  this  can  be  accomplished. 

One  could  go  into  greater  detail  and  develop  this 
subject  in  a  much  broader  way — storing  the  wheat  in  ele- 
vators, shipping  it  to  other  countries,  the  different  products 
made  from  wheat — but  with  a  Second  and  Third  Grade, 
it  seems  inexpedient  to  develop  the  story  beyond  the  point 
of  making  a  loaf  of  bread. 


POST  OFFICE 

MRS.  L.  A.  MILLER.  Third  Gr.ade,  Walker  Street  School 


Letter  writing,  which  is  in  our  course  of  study,  led  us 
into  the  study  of  the  post-office  and  the  transportation  of 
mail  matter. 

100 


"Projects" 

At  the  library  I  obtained  a  book  by  Daniel  C  Roper, 
on  the  United  States  Post  Office.  From  this  book  I  out- 
lined my  work  as  follows: 

1 .  Need  of  postal  ser\'ice. 

2.  \\  here  it  received  Its  name.     Different 

kinds  of  systems. 

3.  Reasons   for  <;rowth  of  postal  service. 

4.  Workings  of  the  Post  Office: 

a.  Handling  of  mail. 

b.  Selling  of  postage. 

c.  Sending  of  money   by   mail. 

5.  \'aluc  of  correct  and  plain  addresses — 

return  address. 

6.  Mail   trains. 

7.  Method  of  rural  dclix'ery. 

8.  Value  of  parcel  post. 

9.  I'orcign  mail. 

10.     Stamps: 

a.    Collecting. 

h.    Different  issues. 

c.    Foreign. 

W'c  spent  half  an  hour  once  a  week  on  these  topics. 
1  read  to  the  chiklrcn  from  "  Roj^cr  '  ihe  parts  that  they 
could  readily  understand,  and  cxplainci.!  those  sections  loo 
difficult  to  be  understood  by  small  children. 

My  next  step  was  a  \  isit  to  the  Federal  Ekiilding  with 
a  part  of  my  class.  The  trip  furnished  abun^lant  material 
for  oral  composition,  which  (inalK  resulted  in  a  wriiicn 
lesson   in   language. 

lU-  this  time,  the  children  had  an  intense  (.lesirc  to 
play  I  he  game  of  post-office  as  it  is  played  in  real  life.  We 
chose  numbers  of  the  class  for  postmaster,  mail-clerk,  and 
mail-canicrs.  We  obtained  some  cancelled  stamps  of  many 
(.ienominations,  also  foreign  stamps  for  our  mail-clerk,  and 
some  money-order  blanks  for  our  money-order  clerk.  In 
manual    training   we    made   mail    bo.xes,    mail    pouches   and 

101 


M ilivaitkee  Public  Schools 

cnxclopcs,  and   then   \\c  were  ready  to  begin  our  game  of 
■■Post-Office.  " 

I  made  a  list  of  words  for  spelling,  such  as  post-office, 
postmaster,  parcel,  package,  stamp,  postage,  letter,  mail- 
man, etc. 

The  question  of  postage,  of  selling  of  stamps,  of  first 
and  second  class  mail  matter,  for  distance  and  for  domestic 
and  foreign  mail,  formed  a  basis  for  a  number  of  \-ery  profit- 
able arithmetic  lessons. 

Need  for  the  correct  writing  of  dates,  days  of  the  week, 
m.onth  and  year,  and  the  writing  of  nam.es  and  addresses 
of  schoolmates  was  discovered  by  the  children  at  an  early 
stage  of  the  game.  This  inability  was  soon  overcome  in 
a  few  lessons  in  penmanship.  Invitations  were  written  and 
mailed  for  a  little  girl  who  was  giving  a  birthday  party. 
This  was  material   for  both  language  and  penmanship. 

We  have  written  many  letters,  mailed  them  in  "our 
post  office,"  had  them  properly  delivered  by  our  "miailmen." 
The  recipient  of  these  letters  then  proceeded  to  correct 
them,  thus  reviewing  their  own  knowledge  of  the  work. 
We  then  ventured  to  write  letters  to  a  third  grade  in  a 
school  in  Michigan,  the  best  of  which  were  selected  to  mail. 
This  proved  very  interesting  to  the  children,  as  well  as 
very  profitable. 

Our  next  x'enture  was  to  help  the  home  correspondence 
by  letting  the  children  bring  letters,  written  at  home,  to 
be  corrected  or  re-written  and  the  envelope  correctly  ad- 
dressed. 

In  our  geography  lesson,  we  located  the  city  and  state 
to  which  our  letters  were  sent.  We  also  traced  the  route 
which  they  would  take,  and  discussed  the  time  when  they 
would  be  received.  In  music  we  have  learned  the  song, 
"Mr.   Postman."   by  Gay  nor. 

Wc  are  at  present  preparing  a  community  letter  to  be 
sent  to  a  school  in  England.  This  is  gixing  us  niatcrial  for 
language  and  for  geography  work  and  the  children  are 
keenly  interested. 


102 


"Projects" 

THE  STORY  OF  COCOA  AND 
CHOCOLATE 

MARJORIE  A.  GRIDLIR,  Third  GRAOii     A,"  Greknbusii 
Street  School 


AIM:  The  teachers  purpose  was  to  correlate  the  study 
of  geography  with  the  everyday  experiences  of  the 
children.  The  pupils'  aim  was  to  prepare  booklets 
for  the  State  Fair  exhibit. 

MATERIAL:  The  Hershey  Company  donated  a  box  con- 
taining seven  bottles,  show  ing  each  stage  in  the  manu- 
facture of  chocolate,  and  also  a  number  of  copies  of 
a  pamphlet  called  "Hershey,  the  Chocolate  Town." 

MEIHOD:  As  requirements  of  the  course  of  study  in 
geography,  the  pupils  learned  the  location  of  the 
zones  and  their  principal  products.  In  connection 
with  the  study  of  the  products  of  the  Torrid  zone, 
interest  in  the  topic  of  cocoa  was  stimulated  by  allow- 
ing the  children  to  examine  the  illustrated  pamphlets 
donated  by  the  Hershey  Company. 

The  pupils  noticed  that  the  cover  had  a  map  of  North 
America  and  vSouth  America — the  map  of  South  America 
showed  the  location  of  a  grove  of  trees  w  ith  men  gathering 
something.  On  the  m.ap  of  North  America,  there  was  a 
picture  of  a  large  factory.  Pictures  of  boats  indicated  that 
material  gathered  in  South  America  was  being  transported 
to  factories  in  North  America.  Upon  reading  their  pamph- 
lets, the  children  learned  that  the  cargo  consistct.1  of  cocoa 
beans,  from  w  hich  cocoa  and  chocolate  are  made.  I  hey 
read  the  story  of  the  manufacture  of  cocoa  and  found  the 
pictures  illustrating  each  stage  of  the  process.  As  a  result 
of  their  interest  in  the  subject,  the  pupils  decided  to  write 
the  story  of  cocoa  and  to  make  booklets  for  the  State  Lair 
exhibit.  To  aid  in  writing  their  compositions,  the  class 
workci^l  out  a  brief  outline.  After  the  compositions  were 
fmished,  several  of  the  best  ones  were  rcai.1.  ani^i  suggestions 
and  criticisms  were  made  by  the  children  under  the  gui^lancc 
of  the  teacher.  The  compositions  were  then  rewritten, 
and  the  booklets  were  completed  by  decorating  the  covers 

103 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

w  iih  pictures  cut  from  advertisements  of  cocoa.  'I  he  pro- 
jeci  was  worked  out  with  enthusiasm,  serving  to  vitalize 
the  study  of  geography. 


RAIN 

LUCY  HEINTZEN,  Thiri:)  Grade  "A,"  Eighteenth  Street 

School 


One  rainy  day,  I  asked  my  pupils  this  question:  "  What 
causes  rain?"  They  replied,  "The  sun  draws  up  water,  and 
then  the  water  comes  down."  For  a  better  understanding 
of  the  cause  of  rain,  we  performed  several  e.xperimients. 
We  poured  water  into  a  shallow  dish  and  noticed  that, 
after  several  days,  the  water  had  disappeared  (evaporated). 
We  observed  that  when  the  water  was  heated,  it  evaporated 
more  rapidly.  We  moistened  our  hands  and  by  waving 
them  rapidly,  we  were  able  to  dry  them  without  using  a 
towel.  "Where  did  the  water  go?"  From  these  simple 
experiments,  we  inferred  that  air  holds  moisture  and  that 
heat  and  wind  increase  e\-aporation.  By  referring  to  many 
facts  of  common  observation,  such  as,  the  "sweating" 
of  a  pitcher  of  ice-water  on  a  warm  day,  we  learned  the 
cause  of  condensation  of  vapor  by  w  hich  rain  is  produced . 

Many  of  the  pupils,  having  little  home  gardens,  told 
of  the  effect  of  rain  upon  the  growth  of  plants.  Pictures 
of  tropical  vegetation  showed  that  heat  and  rain  produce 
luxuriant  vegetation.  Heavy  rainfalls  sometimes  cause 
dangerous  floods.  Some  pupils  recalled  how  heavy  rains 
had  changed  the  little  Menomonee  Ri\er  into  a  \iolent 
stream  that  flooded  the  valley.  In  this  connection  dams 
and  levees  were  mentioned  as  means  of  protection  to  per- 
sons living  near  certain  rivers. 

In  trying  to  locate  the  regions  where  there  is  an  abund- 
ance of  rain,  we  considered  that  there  is  more  evaporation 
from  the  ocean  than  from  the  land  and  that  in  tropical 
countries,  heat  causes  rapid  evaporation.  We  therefore 
looked  for  much  rain  in  the  hot  belt.     The  effect  of  pre- 

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"Projects" 

vailing  winds  and  mountains  on  rainfall  was  noted.  The 
influence  of  the  Gulf  stream  and  the  Japan  Current  on  rain- 
fall was  discussed.  By  using  reference  books,  we  learned 
that  the  average  rainfall  in  Wisconsin  is  31  inches,  whereas 
in  some  parts  of  the  Hawaiian  Islands,  it  is  30  feet;  that 
northern  India  has  an  annual  rainfall  of  40  feet,  three  feet 
of  rain  sometimes  falling  in  one  day.  As  the  children 
wished  to  know  how  rainfall  is  measured,  pictures  of  a 
rain  gauge  were  secured  from  the  Weather  Bureau  in  the 
Federal  Building. 

In  regions  in  which  little  moisture  is  brought  by  the 
winds  or  in  which  there  are  no  mountains  to  condense 
vapor-laden  winds,  the  rainfall  is  small  In  some  of  these 
regions,  the  water  necessary  for  the  growth  of  crops  is 
supplied  by  irrigation.  The  water  is  obtained  from  moun- 
tain reservoirs  or  from  artesian  wells  and  is  distributed  by 
means  of  irrigating  canals  and  ditches. 

In  addition  to  being  a  great  factor  in  agriculture,  rain 
stimulates  manufacturing.  For  protection  from  rain,  rub- 
bers, raincoats,  and  umbrellas  are  necessary.  We  learned 
that  there  are  several  rubber  factories  in  Milwaukee  where 
useful   articles  arc  made  from  crude  rubber. 

The  topic  "rain"  was  very  appropriate  for  the  month 
of  April  because  there  were  many  showers  during  the  month. 
After  some  of  the  showers  the  sun  shone,  causing  a  rainbow. 
The  explanation  of  the  rainbow  was  made  clear  by  using  a 
glass  prism  for  separating  a  ray  of  light  into  the  rainbow 
colors.  In  preparing  answers  to  questions,  the  children 
used  the  following  books  for  reference: 

"[•"irst  Lessons  in  Physical  Science,"  (F.  M.  A\cry)- 

"Home  Geography,"   (C.  C.  Long). 

"Nature  Study  and  Literature,"  (.Anna  F.  McGov- 

ern). 
"(jcographical  Nature  Studies,"  (Frank  Owen  Payne) 
"Nature  Stories,"    (Mary  Gardner). 

In  concluding  our  slud\'  of  rain,  we  lcarnet.1  the  follow- 
ing poem,  which  we  found  in  ihc  Natural  MethoLJ  Reat^lcr 
Book   II: 

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Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

A   Raindrop's   Ride 

Some  little  drops  of  water 
Whose  home  was  in  the  sea, 
To  go  upon  a  journey 
Once  happened  to  agree. 
A  white  cloud  was  the  carriage, 
Their  horse,  a  playful  breeze; 
And  over  town  and  country 
They  rode  along  at  ease. 
But,  oh!  there  were  so  many, 
At  last  the  carriage  broke, 
And  to  the  ground  came  tumbling 
Those  frightened  little  folk. 
Among  the  grass  and  flowers 
They  then  were  forced  to  roam, 
Until  a  brooklet  found  them 
And  carried  them  all  home. 


WIND 

BESSIE  CALLEN,  Third  Grade  "A,"  Cass  Street  School 


Since  March  has  been  called  the  "month  of  winds," 
we  chose  the  subject  of  wind  as  a  suitable  center  of  interest 
for  school  activities  during  the  month.  In  the  course  of 
informal  talks,  many  questions  arose,  and  the  pupils  evinced 
a  keen  interest  in  solving  the  problems  which  are  incidentally 
suggested,  such  as,  "What  is  wind^  What  is  a  draft? 
When  do  we   feel  a  draft ^" 

After  se\'eral  pupils  had  \olunteered  answers  crudely 
formulated  from  their  own  experiences,  we  performed  a 
simple  experiment  found  on  page  47  of  "First  Book  in 
Geography,"  by  Brihgam  and  N4cFarlane.  We  opened  a 
window  at  the  top  and  at  the  bottom,  holding  a  handker- 
chief at  each  place.  The  pupils  soon  observed  that  the 
handkerchief  at  the  bottom  of  the  window  blew  inward, 
whereas  the  one  at  the  top  blew  outward,  indicating  a 
draft.  To  explain  the  movement  of  the  handkerchiefs, 
the  pupils  were  led  to  observe  that  the  cold  air  entered 

106 


^'Projects" 

through  the  lower  opening,  forcing  the  warm  air  through 
the  upper  opening.  From  this  simple  experiment,  the 
pupils  learned  that  a  draft  is  caused  by  a  difference  in 
temperature  of  the  air.  We  also  observed  that  we  could 
produce  a  draft  by  moving  the  air  w  ith  a  fan.  After  noting 
the  similarity  of  drafts  and  winds,  the  pupils  defined  wind 
as  air  in  motion.  To  initiate  the  habit  of  using  reference 
books  and  to  improve  their  simple  statement,  the  pupils 
were  asked  to  find  the  definition  of  wind  in  Webster's 
Unabridged  Dictionary  and  in  any  axailablc  geography 
text-books. 

In  studying  the  properties  of  the  wiiul,  the  following 
questions  arose: 

Where  is  the  win^l? 
Can  we  see  it'! 
Can  we  hear  it  ? 

The  pui^ils  gave  simple  answers,  expressing  their  own 
obser\atic)n  or  experience.  .An  emotional  element  was 
added  by  learning  the  song,  "Who  Has  Seen  the  Wind?" 
by  Christina  Rossetti,   from  ;\  Chikl's  Book  of  Songs. 

Who  has  seen  the  wind? 
Neither  I   nor  you; 
l^ut  when  the  leaves  hang  trembling 
The  wind  is  passing  through. 
Who  has  seen  the  w  inLp 
Neither  you  nor  I ; 

But  when  the  trees  bow  ^low  n  their  heads, 
The   wintl   is  passing  by. 

"The  Wind,"  by  Robert  Louis  Stevenson,  telling  of 
the  actions  of  the  wind  and  expressing  a  chikl's  sense  of 
mystery,   was  memorized. 

The   Wind 

I   saw  you  toss  the  kites  on   high, 
And  blow  the  birds  about  the  sky; 
.\iul   all  aroun<.l   I   heard  you  pass. 
Like  ladies'  skirts  across  the  grass — 

O  wind,  a-blowing  all  day  long! 

O  wind,  that  sings  so  loud  a  song! 

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Miiivaukee  Public  Schools 

I  saw  the  different  things  you  did, 
But  always  you  yourself  you  hid. 
I   felt  you  push,   I   heard  you  call, 
I   could  not  see  yourself  at  all — 

O  wind,  a-blowing  all  day  long! 

O  wind,  that  sings  so  loud  a  song! 

O  you  that  are  so  strong  and  cold, 
O  blower,  are  you  young  or  old? 
Are  you  a.  beast  of  field  and  tree. 
Or  just  a  stronger  child  than  me? 

O  wind,  a-blowing  all  day  long! 

O  wind,   that  sings  so  loud  a  song! 

After  learning  the  poem,  the  pupils  made  colored  illus- 
trations during  the  drawing  lesson.  Each  child  tried  to 
show  that  the  wind  was  blowing  by  drawing  pictures  of 
flying  kites  and  sailing  boats.  The  pupils  also  enjoyed 
learning  the  poem  "Windy  Nights,"  from  Stevenson's  "A 
Child's  Garden  of  Verses,"  and  "The  Night  Wind,"  by 
Eugene  Field,  taking  particular  delight  in  imitating  the 
sound  of  the  wind. 

During  the  music  period,  we  learned  a  pretty  song 
entitled  "The  Wind's  Song,"  p.  79  of  the  "New  Educa- 
tional Reader,  Book  I." 

Soft  blows  the  western  wind. 
Hark  to  the  song  he  sings. 
Telling  of  wondrous  things 
Far,   far  away. 

Wide  fields  of  ripening  grain 
Sunshine  on  hill  and  plain. 
Parched  lands  that  thirst  for  rain 
Far,   far  away. 

Strong  blows  the  eastern  wind 
Strange  are  the  tales  he  brings, 
He  sings  of  other  things. 
Far,   far  away. 

Ships  passing  to  and  fro. 
Great  white-winged  birds  that  go 
O'er  seas  that  ebb  and  flow- 
Far,   far  away. 

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"  Projects" 

The  interest  in  the  study  of  the  wind  was  now  so  keen 
that  the  children  examined  carefully  many  books  secured 
from  the  f^ublic  Library.  Some  of  the  children  prepared 
selections  which  they  read  to  the  class  and  others  recited 
short  poems  of  their  own  choice,  such  as: 


Little   Wind — Kate  Greenaway 

Little   wind,  blow  on   die   hilltop, 

Little   wind,  blow    ^low  n   ihe  plain: 

Little  wind,  blow    up  the  sunshine, 

Little  wind,  blow  off  the  rain. 


Blow,  Wind,  Blow — Mother  Goose 

Blow,   wind,   blow! 

And   ii,o,   mill,   ^o' 

That  the  miller  may  grind   his  corn, 

That  the  baker  may  take  it. 

And  into  rolls  make  it, 

And  send  us  some  hot   in   the  morn. 


The   North   Wind   Doth   Blow 
Nursery   Rhyme 

The  north  wind  doth  blow 
And  we  shall  ha\e  snow. 
And   what    will   poor   robin  do  then!* 
Poor  thing! 

}  le'll   si  I    in   a  barn 
And,   lo  keep  himself  warm, 
Will   hide  his  heai-1   under  his  wing, 
Poor  thing! 


Song  of  the   Windmill 

Around   an^l  aroLini^l  an^l  around   I   go, 
Sometimes   fast  and  sometimes  slow. 
I    pump  the  water  and  grint^l  the  grain, 
'ihe  marshy   fields  of  the   lowlands  drain. 
1    harness  the  wind   to  turn   my  mill 
Around  and  around  and  around  with  a  wil 

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Milivaukee  Public  Schools 

The  question  of  naming  the  winds  gave  rise  to  an  inter- 
esting lesson  in  geography.  The  pupils  learned  the  points 
of  the  compass  from  a  direction  game  in  which  they  im- 
personated the  winds  blowing  from  different  points  of  the 
compass.  An  opportunity  for  language  work  was  afforded 
by  permitting  the  children  to  tell  the  direction  of  the  wind 
as  they  observed  it  on  their  way  to  school.  In  connection 
with  the  study  of  the  direction  of  the  wind,  the  following 
poem  was  learned : 


The  Four  Winds 

BY  Catharine  Dean 

All:  Four  winds  that  come  and  go  are  we, 

We  blow  o'er  land,  we  blow  o'er  sea, 
We  come   from  north,  south,   east  and  west. 
Do  you  know  which  one  of  us  is  best? 

First:  Out  of  the  west   I  come  to  bring 

Buds,   blossoms,   and  birds  that  sing. 
Green  grass,  soft   mosses,   too,    I   claim, 
The  waking  west  wind  is  my  name. 

Second:         With  sunny  smiles  I   warm  the  earth, 
Till  every  heart  rebounds  with  mirth. 
I  am  south  w  incl,  and  warm,  warm  days 
I   bring  with  sunshines  brightest  rays. 

Third:  Tap,  tap  upon  the  window  pane 

Dark  clouds  hang  low  and  then  the  rain, 
Fm  east  wind,   now  upon  my  way 
And  indoors  all  the  children  play. 

Fourth:         North  wind  am   I,   you  hear  me  blow, 
Get  ready  till   we  coasting  go. 
The  snow  upon  the  hills   I   brought. 
The  ice  upon  the  pond   I   wrought. 

All:  Four  happy  workers  with  a  will, 

Some  duty  always  to  fulfill. 
Four  winds  from  north,  south,  east,  and  west; 
Please  tell  me  now-  which  is  the  best"' 


In  response  to  this  question,  the  following  stanza  from 
Stevenson's  "Home  Book  of  Verse,"  was  memorized: 

110 


"Projects" 

Whichever  way  the  wind  doth  blow. 
Some  heart  is  glad  to  have  it  so; 
Then  blow  it  east,  or  blow  it  west, 
The  wind  that  blows,  that  wind  is  best. 

In  studying  the  directions  of  the  wind,  the  weather- 
vane  was  mentioned.  Some  of  the  children  had  seen  weather 
vanes  on  barns  in  the  country,  and  the  \alue  of  the  weather- 
vane  to  the  farmer  was  explained.  The  story  of  "The 
Half  Chick,  or  The  Origin  of  the  \\'eather-\ane,'"  was  told 
to  the  children  and  they  were  soon  able  to  reproduce  it  in 
their  own  words.  The  dramatization  of  the  story  was 
thoroughly  enjoyed,  each  child  being  an.xious  to  take  the 
part  of  the  half-chick.  In  connection  with  the  study  of 
the  weather-\'ane,  the  children  read  the  stor>-  of  "The  I-'ool- 
ish  Weathercock,"  p.  20,  Riverside  Reader,  Book  11.  Addi- 
tional reading  included  the  story  of  ""Ulysses  and  the  Bag 
of  Winds,"  p.  120,  Riverside  Reader,  Book  11,  and  '"The 
l-ad  Who  Went  to  the  North  Wind,  "  p.  112,  Elsons  Reader. 
Book  II.  Many  words,  such  as  cyclone  and  hurricane 
were  added  to  their  x'ocabulary  through  purposeful  reading. 
Aesop's  fable  of  ""The  Wind  and  the  Sun,"  was  retold  and 
dramatized  according  to  the  children's  interpretation. 

In  stating  the  uses  of  the  wind,  the  children  made  the 
following  sentences,  which  ser\ed  as  a  dictation  exercise 
in  spelling: 


The  wind  sails  boats. 
The  wind   turns  windmills. 
Windmills  pump  water. 
The  wind  dries  the  land   for  the   farmer. 
The  wind   brings  the  rain. 
The   win^l   blows  the   rain  cIolkIs   from   place  to 

place. 
The   wind   brings   Iresh   air   (or  us  to  breathe. 
The    wind    remo\es    the    (.lust    and    smoke    from 

cities. 


The  use  of  the  windmills  suggested  1  lolland,  the  land 
of  windmills.  The  following  books  were  used  as  sources 
of  information: 


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Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

'■  The  Dutch  Twins," — Lucy  Perkins. 

■'Holland  Stories," — Mary  E.   Smith. 

"Nan  and  Ned  in  Holland," — Olmstead  and  Grant. 

"The  Wind's  Work," — Maude  Lindsay. 

P.    Ib4,   Second  Reader: 

"Studies  in   Reading," — Searson  and   Martin. 

The  supplementary  reading  was  the  basis  of  socialized 
larguage  lessons.  Accepting  the  suggestion  of  some  of  the 
children,  we  decided  to  represent  a  Dutch  village  on  the 
sandtable.  Grass  seed  was  planted  in  the  wet  sand.  Houses 
and  barns  were  made  of  gray  bristoi  board.  The  chief 
objects  of  interest,  however,  were  the  windmills  with  their 
four  spreading  arms,  forming  a  characteristic  feature  of 
Holland  landscapes.  In  connection  with  the  study  of  the 
windmills  of  Holland,  the  pupils  were  made  acquainted  by 
means  of  Perry  pictures,  with  three  celebrated  paintings, 
namely,  "The  Mill,"  and  "Landscape  with  Mill,"  by 
Rembrandt,   and   "The  Mill,"   by  Ruysdael. 

The  study  of  the  wind  and  related  topics  continued 
throughout  the  month  of  March,  and  I  felt  that  the  children 
had  gained  much  valuable  information  besides  getting  a 
broader  outlook  on   life  activities. 

SUMMARY  OF  THE  WIND  PROJECT 
I.      Reading: 

A.      Read  by  the  children: 

1.  "Ned  and  Nan  in  Holland,"  125  pages. 

Primary  Reader — Olm.stead  &  Grant. 

2.  "Ulysses  and  Bag  of  Winds,"  1 20  pages, 

Riverside  Reader,  Book   II. 

3.  "The  Foolish  Weathercock."   20  pages, 

Rixerside  Reader,  Book  II. 

4.  "Lad  Who  Went  to  the  North  Wind," 

112  pages,  Elson's  Reader,  Book  II. 

5.  "The  Wind  King,"  Ste\enson"s  Reader. 

6.  "The    Four    W'inds,"     Art    Literature 

Reader,  Book  II. 

7.  "Wind    Stories,"    Stories    of    the    Red 

Children — Brooks. 

112 


"Projects" 

8.  "'The  Wind's  Work,"  pp.  164-170. 
"Studies  in  Reading,"  2nd  Reader — 
Scarson  6:  Martin. 

B.       Read  by  the  teacher: 

1.  "Dutch  Twins," — Lucy  Perkins. 

2.  "Stories  of  Holland," — Mary  E.Smith. 

II.     Language: 

A.      Poems  memorized: 

1.  "Who    Has    Seen    the   Wind?" — Chris- 

tina Rossetti. 

2.  "Windy    Nights"— Robert    Louis 

Stevenson. 

3.  "The  Wind" — Robert  Louis  Stevenson. 

4.  "The  Night  Wind" — Eugene  Field. 

5.  "The  I -"our  Winds" — Catharine  Dean. 


B.      Stories: 


1.  "The  Half  Chick," 

2.  "The  Wind  and  the  Sun,." 

3.  "Peter  and  the  Dike" 

4.  "The  Wind  and  the  Plants,"  (a  fable). 


Music: 


A.  "Who  Has  Seen  the  Wind '"—Child's  Book  of 

Songs,  Ripley  and  Hearst. 

B.  "The  Winds  Song" — New  Et^iucational,  Book  1. 

C.  "In  Wooden  Shoes" — Progressive,  Book  1. 

I\'.     Manual  Training: 

A.      Construction  for  sandtablc  -windmills,  houses, 
barns,   boats. 

V.     Drawing: 

A.      Colored  illustrations  of 

1.  Windy  Day. 

2.  Sailing  on  canals, 

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Milwaukee  Public  Schools 
B.      ColorcxI  pose  cLit-oLits  for  sancltable. 

VI.     Art   Appreciation: 

A.       Perry  pictures  of 

1.  "The  Mill" — Rembrandt. 

2.  "Landscape  with  Mill" — Rembrandt. 

3.  "The  Mill"— Ruysdael. 


A  PLAYLET  TO  CELEBRATE 

THE 

DIAMOND  JUBILEE 

OF  THE 

CITY  OF  MILWAUKEE 

AGNES  E.  FAHSEL,  Third  Grade  "A"  and  Fourth  Grade 
"B,"  Third  Street  School 


Outline 

The  aims  of  this  project  are: 

A.  To  teach  the  early  history  of  the  pupil's  native 

city. 

B.  To  call  attention  to  the  virtues  as  expressed  in 

the  characters  of  the  early  settlers. 

C.  To   inculcate   in   the  children   a   proper   under- 

standing of  the  vast  amount  of  work  done  and 
the  great  wealth  accumulated  by  their  fore- 
fathers. 

D  To  bring  home  to  the  children  a  proper  appreci- 
ation of  this  great  heritage  and  to  impress 
upon  them  their  duty  to  improve  upon  the 
same,  thus  making  Milwaukee  a  finer  and 
a  better  city. 

114 


Projects 

II.  Development: 

A.  A  short  story  of  the  settlement  was  given  the 

class  by  the  teacher,  anJ  the  pupils  were  en- 
couraged to  bring  in  stories  as  they  learned 
them  from  their  relatives  and  friends. 

B.  From  the  pictures  of  settlers  and  Indians,  which 

they  gathered,  the  pupils  learned  of  the  acces- 
sories needed   for  the  play. 

C.  A  trip  to  the  Art  Institute  and  the  Layton  Art 

Gallery  took  the  class  through  both  the  busi- 
ness and  the  residence  districts  of  the  city. 
In  this  way  they  had  an  actual  view  of  what 
had  been  accomplished  by  growth  and  de- 
velopment in  the  City  of  Milwaukee. 

III.  Characters  and  .Accessories: 

From  the  story  acquired  by  means  of  informal  lessons 
and  personal  narratives  of  their  parents.,  the  different  char- 
acters for  the  play  were  developed.  The  indixiciual  speak- 
ing parts  were  assigned  to  those  pupils  who  had  demon- 
strated, especially  in  their  reading  and  language  lessons, 
their  ability  to  speak  distinctly  and  intelligently.  Ihe 
greater  part  of  the  play  was  in  chorus  recitations. 

Those  who  took  the  role  of  Indians  mat.le  their  bows 
and  arrows,  tomahawks  and  kni\es,  of  wood:  and  their 
war  bonnets,  of  feathers  gathered  in  their  own  poultry  yards. 

The   fairies  made  wings  to  wear  with  their  white  dresses. 

The  early  settlers  carried  guns  and  a.xes  an*.!  wore  large 
boots  and  old-fashioned  coats  and  hats.  The  girls,  as 
settlers"  wives,  also  wore  old-fashioned  cKmHc^,  for  the  most 
part,   made  by  themselves. 

IV.  Scenery: 

Had  we  gi\en  the  play  in  our  own  room,  some  of  our 
111  lie  artists  would  have  sketched  the  woodland  scenery  on 
the  board,  as  they  had  often  done  for  our  puppet  shows. 
This  was  out  of  the  question,  howe\er,  on  the  stage  of  our 
auditorium,  and,  therefore,  we  hud  to  lea\e  the  scenery 
entirely  to  the  imagination. 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 
Playlet 

Characters: 

Fairies:     I'"ailh,   Hope,   Courage,   Progress,   Enterprise. 
Solomon  Juneau  George  Walker 

Byron  Kilbourn  Settlers 

Indians 

Scene  I. 
Fairies — Indians. 

Fairies:  Many  hundred  years  ago,  we  gave  you  this  fair 
country  for  your  home.  You  have  neither 
changed  it  nor  improved  it  in  the  least. 

Indians:  No.  Why  should  we^  We  hunted  ancl  fished 
here — sometimes  in  peace  and  plenty  and 
then  again  in  sore  distress,  famine  and  disease 
overtaking  us.  Yet  all  came  to  us  from  the 
great  Spirit,  Manitou,  and  we  were  satisfied. 
What  is  to  be,   Vvill  be. 

Fairies:  Very  well:  you  have  had  your  chance.  So  be  it! 
Now  let  the  white  men  come  and  let  us  see 
what  they  will  do. 

Scene  II. 
Fairy  Courage:      (calls)     Solomon  Juneau,  come  hither! 

Juneau:  Here  on  the  shore  of  Lake  Michigan  by  the  stream 
the  Indians  call  Milwaukee,  I  am  going  to 
build  my  log  cabin  and  start  a  trading  post. 

Fairy  Enterprise:     (calls)     Byron  Kilbourn,   come  hither! 

Kilbourn:  The  west  shore  of  the  Milwaukee  Ri\er  looks 
to  me  like  fertile  soil.  I  will  claim  that  land 
and  settle  there  as  a  farmer. 

Fairy  Progress:     George  Walker,  come  hither! 

Walker:  I  like  this  part  of  the  countr-y  south  of  the  Me- 
nomonee  Ri\cr.  I  am  going  to  builcl  my 
home  here. 

116 


"Projects" 

F-airies:     (call)     More  settlers,  come! 

Settlers:  We  are  the  pioneers.  By  wagon  and  by  boat  \\c 
have  tra\  eled  great  distances,  bringing  our 
families  here  to  build  our  homes  in  this  beauti- 
ful new  country.     Hurrah  for  Milwaukee! 

Fairies:     We  endow  \ou  with  our  blessings. 

Scene  III. 

Fairies:  ScNenty-fue  years  ha\e  passed  and  we  come  to  see 
what  our  white  settlers  ha\e  accomplished. 
We  find  a  wonderful  change.  Here  is  this 
beautiful  city  of  Milwaukee  with  its  half  mil- 
lion of  people,  its  fine  schools  and  churches, 
its  many  factories  and  stores,  its  railroads  and 
street  cars,  its  beautiful  parks  and  homes. 
Here  live  all  these  white  people  now  in  peace 
and  plenty.  May  faith,  hope,  courage,  enter- 
prise, efficiency  and  progress  be  with  them 
fore\er. 

Settlers:  (Stepping  to  front  of  stage,  sing  to  tunc  of 
America.) 

Milwaukee,   'tis  the  same 
To  which  our  fathers  came 
Long,  long,  ago. 
Long  may  our  town  be  bright 
With  progress'   brilliant  light, 
Let  faith  and  hope  lead  us 
In  this  our  town. 


THE  "ZOO" 

GF.NEVIEVE  K!(  .\I.MS  1  [iR     1  iiiki>  Gkaim:.  Hi-Molm 

BoL'LFiVARD  Sc.HOOL 


The  topic  of  "animals,  "  which  constitutes  a  part  of 
the  geography  assignment  for  the  third  grade,  is  particu- 
larly interesting  to  the  children  living  in  the  vicinity  of 
Washington  Park,  where  the  city  "Zoo  "  is  located.  Items 
of  interest  about  the  "zoo"  are  frequently  reported  by  the 
children.       As  a  result  of  the  interest  manifested  by  my 

117 


M iliixuikcc   Public  Schools 

pupils,  I  i-iromistxl  to  accompany  ihcm  t(j  Washington  I^ark 
some  time  clurinL^  the  term. 

In  preparation  (or  the  trip  to  the  "zoo"  we  studied  the 
to|^ic,   "wild  animals,"  using  the  following  outline: 

1.  Names   of   wild   animals,    brief  descrip- 

tion   of    anim.als,    including    color, 
size,   habits,   and   behavior. 

2.  Classification  of  wild  animals  according 

to  the  climatic  belts  in  which  they 
live. 

3.  Animal  habitations. 

4.  Capture  of  wild  animals. 

In  addicion  to  the  general  work  of  the  class,  each  pupil 
prepared  a  brief  written  description  of  some  particular 
animal.  In  their  efforts  to  present  interesting  reports,  the 
children  consulted  many  juvenile  books  obtained  from  the 
Public  Library.  After  this  preparation,  the  pupils  were 
ready  to  profit  by  a  trip  to  the   "zoo." 

It  was  therefore  necessary  to  write  a  letter  to  the 
principal  in  order  to  secure  his  permission  to  make  the  \isit 
on  some  afternoon.  As  the  best  letter  was  to  be  sent  to 
the  principal,  great  interest  was  taken  in  penmanship. 
The  following  is  a  copy  of  the  letter  which  the  children 
voted  to  be  the  best: 

Hi-Mount  Blvd.   School 
Milwaukee,   Wis. 
April    11,    1Q21. 
"Dear  Mr.   Nicolaus: 

Our  class  is  studying  about  the  animals  in  dif- 
ferent parts  of  the  world.  We  would  like  to  see 
these  animals  and  know  more  about  them.  Our 
"Zoo"  at  Washington  Park  is  one  of  the  finest 
in  the  United  States.  May  our  class  please  have 
an  afternoon  next  week  to  visit  the  "zoo"!'  It 
will  help  us  very  much  in  our  work  and  we  will  try 
to  show  how  much  we  appreciate  it  by  studying 
harder. 

Respect  full  v. 

DONALD  HESSION." 
Third  Crade. 

118 


"Projects" 

The  letter  was  sent  to  Mr.  Xicolaus  and  his  reply  was 
awaited  with  keen  interest.  There  was  great  excitement 
when  his  letter  granting  permission  was  read  to  the  class. 
After  some  discussion,  a  day  was  set  for  the  visit:  hut  the 
weather  for  several  days  was  such  that  we  were  obliged  to 
postpone  our  visit  and  content  ourselves  with  imaginary 
trips  to  the  zoo.  But  our  anxious  waiting  was  finally  re- 
warded by  a  particularly  pleasant  day,  May  bth.  We  were 
given  permission  to  leave  at  ten  o"clock  and  spend  the  re- 
mainder of  the  morning  at  the  zoo.  How  slow  ly  the  clock 
ticked  that  first  hour  of  school!  A  few.'  minutes  before  the 
hour  found  us  excitedly  wending  our  way  toward  Washing- 
ton Park.  We  saw  many  birds  and  a  few  spring  flowers. 
In  due  time  we  arrived  at  the  park  entrance.  The  fox  and 
the  grizzly  bear  had  probably  seen  us  coming  and.  not  caring 
for  such  noisy  visitors,  concealed  themscKcs  in  their  dens. 
But  one  of  the  eagles  in  the  next  cage  was  so  anxious  to  be 
friendly  that  he  soon  had  the  children  crowded  against  his 
cage  and  chuckling  at  his  ungainly  strides.  It  was  John 
who  spied  Zero,  the  baby  polar  bear,  a  short  distance  away, 
and  at  his  shout,  "Oh,  let  s  go  over  and  see  the  bear!"  the 
class  immediately  forgot  the  eagles  and  owls  and  scampered 
toward  the  bear's  cage.  Zero,  scarcely  a  year  and  a  half 
old,  is  not  accustomed  to  being  examined  and  criticized  so 
openly  and  showed  his  resentment  by  pacing  round  and 
round  his  tank,  occasionally  glaring  at  his  young  critics. 
His  mother.  Lady  Sil\er,  in  the  next  cage,  was  shedding  her 
fur  and  a  sorry  sight  she  was!  Passing  along  the  main 
thoroughfare  of  the  zoo,  the  children  became  excited,  curious 
and  alarmed  alternately,  as  unconcerned  cinnamon  bear  and 
porcupine,  sleepy  raccoons  and  snarling  hyenas  and  badgers 
came  to  view. 

The  "Anim;il  1  louse,"  a  real  wondcrlanLi.  never  enter- 
tained a  more  interested  and  happ\-  group  of  chiklrcn.  The 
deafening  screech  of  parrots  mingled  with  the  chattering 
of  monkeys  was  music  to  their  childish  ears.  Cx)untcss 
Heine,  the  elephant,  caused  no  little  excitement  by  spraying 
water  on  several  who  ventured  too  near.  Milton,  rather 
indolent  in  sch(X)l,  after  gazing  for  several  minutes  at  the 
alligators  lying  motionless  on  the  rocks  and  the  square 
foot  of  leathery  back — all  that  couLl  be  seen  of  the  sub- 
merged hippopotamus  remarked.  "I  don't  lil<c  them. 
They're  too  lazy  to  mo\e.  "  He  was  politcK'  reminded  by 
a  classmate  of  the  old  adage,  "  People  in  glass  houses  should 

110 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

never  throw  stones."  The  "Ohs"  and  "Ahs"  that  greeted 
the  two  licjn  cubs  surely  pleased  Brutus,  the  proud  father, 
although  he  remained  the  personification  of  dignity.  He, 
alone,  inspired  the  children  with  a  feeling  of  awe.  At  the 
jaguar's  cage  adjoining,  this  quickly  changed  to  one  of 
pity  when  the  children  saw  one  of  the  jaguars  minus  an 
eye — the  result  of  snatching  a  piece  of  meat  from  his  mate. 
After  duly  admiring  a  couple  of  leopards  and  a  pair  of  moun- 
tain lions,  we  left  this  building  and  started  homeward, 
passing  the  fields  inhabited  by  a  sleepy  old  camel,  several 
frisky  zebras,  a  gnu  that  tried  in  vain  to  break  through  the 
barrier  of  heavy  wire,  and  a  couple  of  Hamas. 

"Look  at  the  funny  teeth  he  has!  And  his  coat  looks 
as  if  he  had  been  in  a  coal  bin!"  exclaimed  Doris,  as  a  llama 
trotted  to  the  fence  to  inspect  his  visitors.  A  stately  pea- 
cock, occupying  the  same  field,  proudly  displayed  his 
gorgeous  tail,  spreading  it  out  in  all  its  glory.  "Just  like 
one  of  the  ladies  in  a  style  show!"  was  one  of  the  comments. 
There  were  many  other  interesting  things  to  be  seen,  but 
the  time  for  our  departure  for  home  had  arrived.  Indeed, 
the  deer  were  not  sorry  that  some  of  the  lively  boys  were 
leaving.  On  reaching  the  park  entrance,  the  class  divided 
into  groups  for  the  return  home  where  a  detailed  account 
of  the  morning  trip  was  given.  During  the  afternoon, 
the  children  wrote  short  stories  of  their  visit. 

After  our  trip  to  the  "zoo,"  the  children  wished  to 
make  a  toy  "zoo"  in  school.  In  carrying  out  their  plans 
they  brought  cardboard  boxes  which  they  converted  into 
cages.  They  modeled  animals  from  clay  or  constructed 
them  of  cardboard  in  quite  an  original  fashion.  They  tried 
very  hard,  indeed,  to  make  their  "zoo"  a  reproduction  of 
the  Washington  Park  "zoo"  and,  in  the  judgment  of  an 
indulgent  teacher,  they  were  quite  successful.  The  chil- 
dren's interest  in  the  "zoo"  is  still  unabated,  as  is  evidenced 
by  the  eagerness  with  which  they  scan  daily  newspapers 
for  items  pertaining  to  the  Washington  Park  "zoo." 


120 


Projects ' 


THE  AMERICAN  FLAG 

CF.RTRUDE  H.  AKIN,  Third  Grade  "A' and  Fourth 
Gradi:  "B,"  Hartford  Avbnue  School 


Ihc  American  flag  was  chosen  as  a  project  in  order  to 
stimulate  interest  in  the  study  of  citizenship.  Sex'cral 
questions  arose  from  informal  talks  with  the  children;  for 
example,   "Who  made  the  first   flag?"   "When  and  where 

was  it   made?" 

A  brief  account  of  the  chief  colonial  flags  was  read  and 
pictures  of  these  flags  were  secured.  An  original  Grand 
Union  and  a  L^etsy  Ross  flag  were  procured  by  members  of 
the  class.  The  following  flags  were  discussed:  "Pine 
Tree,"  "Grand  Union,"  "Rattlesnake,"  "Betsy  Ross," 
and  the  "Star  Spangled  Banner."  The  flag  pledge  ani.! 
the  correct   salule  to  the  flag  were  learned. 

An  interesting  phase  of  the  work  was  the  finding  o(  a 
(lag  quotation  by  each  member  of  the  class.  These  quo- 
tations were  given  in  response  to  roll  call.  Ihe  children 
also  learned  many  facts  relative  to  the  etiquette  of  the  (lag; 
(or  example,  w  hen  a  Hag  is  passing  on  parade,  what  should 
the  spectators  do  to  show  respect  for  the  flag?  Many 
points  of  (lag  etiquette  were  demonstrated  by  several  of 
the  boys.  One  boy  made  a  pole  and  displayed  a  de\iee 
(or  hoisting  and  lowering  the  (lag.  A  list  of  days  on  which 
the  flag  should  be  displa>ed  was  placed  on  the  boari.!. 

Interest  was  heightened  b\'  means  of  the  following 
pictures; 

"The   Birih  of  the   Mag." 

"l^utting  the  Stars  on  the  hirst  Idag        1..  j.  I  err  is. 

"Betsy   Ross  ani^l   the   lirst    ("lag." 

"Now  and   h"ore\er"      k.    I\ic\. 

Although  the  project  was  meant  primarily  for  the 
stLkK  of  citizenship,  nevertheless,  it  was  extremely  \aluable 
from  the  standpoint  of  language  work,  \lan\-  beaut ilul 
poems  were  learned,  the  favorites  being  ""I'our  Mag  an*.! 
Kly  Mag,"  and  "     The  Mag  Goes  By." 

[2[ 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

Two  little  girls  prepared  a  dramatization  of  "The 
I'irst  Mag"  as  a  surprise  to  the  class.  The  subject  "The 
Brownie  and  the  Flag"  was  assigned  to  the  children  several 
days  in  advance  for  the  preparation  of  dialogues.  Upon 
the  appointed  day,  the  dialogues  were  read  by  various 
children.  The  best  one  was  selected  and  dramatized. 
Another  feature  of  language  work  was  the  writing  of  a 
short  composition  about  any  of  the  historical  flags. 

Among  the  stories  read  by  the  children  were  "The 
Star  Spangled  Banner,"  "Three  Cheers  for  the  Red,  White, 
and  Blue,"  "Trudy's  Flag,"  "The  Torn  Flag,"  and  "Betsy 
Ross  and  the  Flag." 

The   following  songs   were   learned: 
"Hail  to  the  Flag." 
"The  Flag  and  the  Eagle." 
"The  Flag  Song." 
"The  Star  Spangled  Banner." 

For  manual  training  and  drawing,  the  children  made 
booklets,  several  pages  of  which  were  devoted  to  drawings 
of  colonial  flags.  The  study  of  the  flag  served  as  a  motive 
for  flag  drills.  On  the  day  appointed,  the  children  demon- 
strated various  figures.  The  best  of  these  were  selected 
and  were  performed  with  musical  accompaniment.  For 
the  pleasure  of  their  parents,  the  children  are  preparing 
the  following  program  for  Flag  Day,  June   14: 

1.  Song:     "On  Wisconsin." 

2.  Song:     "Columbia,   the  Gem  of  the  Ocean." 

3.  Roll  Call:     Flag  quotations. 

4.  Recitation:     "Our  Flag,"   Betty,   Roland  and  Alan. 

5.  Recitation:     "What    Our    Flag    Means,"    Gladys 

Griffiths. 

6.  Dialogue:     "The  Brownie  and  the  Flag,"   Frederick, 

Jane,  Helen,  and  John. 

7.  Recitation:     "Uncle   Sam's   ^'oung  Army,"   Carl 

Moebius. 

8.  Recitation:     "Hurrah    for   Our    Flag,"    Roberta,    Ila, 

Eileen,  Jane. 

9.  Song:  "The  Flag  and  the  Eagle." 
10.  Flag  Song. 

122 


"Projects" 

11.  Recitation:     "Your  Flag  and  My  Flag,"'  Elice  W'cbcr. 

12.  Flag  Drill:     (Twelve  boys  and  twelve  girls.) 

13.  Recitation:     "The  Old  Flag  Forever,"  Robert  Stivers. 

14.  Dialogue:     "The   First   Flag,"   Mannette   Rosenberg, 

Lillian  Goldmann. 

15.  Recitation:     "Old  Glory,"  Estelle  Montivid. 

16.  Tableau:     "The  Birth  of  the  Flag,"  Milton,  I'redcrick, 

Billy,  Jean,  and  Leone. 

17.  Demonstrations:     "Paying    Respect    to    Old    Glorv," 

(Boys). 

18.  Recitation:     "The  Flag  Goes  By,"  Class. 

19.  Flag  Pledge,  Class. 

20.  Song:     "Star  Spangled  Banner." 


123 


PART  II  — GAMES 


PLAY  AS  A  FACTOR  IN  EDUCATION 


"The  main  concern  in  a  child's  lile  is  that  manifold 
business  understood  by  him,  and  dimly  by  his  elders,  as 
Play.  He  wakes  up  in  bed  even  before  the  dawn,  and  plots 
out  a  fairyland  of  play-doings  for  the  day  until  he  is  al- 
lowed to  get  up.  Then  while  the  fires  are  still  crackling 
on  the  wood  you  can  hear  him  pattering  about  the  landing 
or  singing  on  the  stairs.  Dressing  is  a  nuisance  because  it 
requires  his  presence  in  one  place  for  some  twenty  minutes; 
toys  must  come  to  table;  food  itself  must  furnish  a  game. 
Porridge  is  an  island  in  a  sea  of  milk,  and  he  would  be 
rather  more  interested  than  shocked  to  find  a  chicken  in 
every  egg.  School,  above  the  kindergarten,  is  a  nuisance 
because  there  is  no  play." — 'The  Play  \\'a\-,'"  \\.  Caldwell 
Cook. 

"Games  have  a  positive  educational  inlluence  that  no 
one  can  appreciate  who  has  not  obser\ed  their  clfccts. 
Children  who  are  slow,  dull,  and  lethargic;  who  obser\e 
but  little  of  what  goes  on  around  them;  who  react  slowly 
to  external  stimuli;  who  are,  in  short,  slow  to  see,  to  hear, 
to  observe,  to  think,  and  to  do,  may  be  completelv  trans- 
formed in  these  ways  by  the  playing  of  games.  The  rela- 
tion of  games  to  a  school  program  is  many-sided.  To  sit 
for  a  day  in  a  class  room  observing  indications  of  ph\sical 
and  mental  strain  and  fatigue  is  to  be  con\inccd  be\ond 
question  that  the  schoolroom  work  and  conditions  induce 
a  tremendous  nervous  strain,  not  onl\'  through  prolonged 
concentration  on  academic  subjects,  but  through  the  ab- 
normal repression  of  mo\ement  and  social  intercourse 
that  becomes  necessary  for  the  maintenance  of  discipline 
and  proper  conditions  of  study." — "Games  for  the  Play- 
ground, Home,  School  and  Cjymnasium,"  Jessie  H.  [Ban- 
croft. 

125 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

"  I  hold  that  it  is  one  of  the  chief  ends  of  education  to 
develop  a  habit  of  joyousness  in  work.  The  fear  that  love 
of  play  will  interfere  with  love  of  work  is  the  most  ground- 
less of  fears.  The  more  a  child  loves  to  play  the  more 
likely  will  he  he  to  love  work.  The  sneers  that  are  made 
at  the  'sugar-coating'  of  school  work  are  made  by  those 
who  do  not  understand  what  play  is,  or  else  are  made  at 
the  efforts  of  those  teachers  who  have  violated  play  in 
ignorant  attempts  to  utilize  it.  I  have  no  plea  for  sugar- 
coated  tasks,  if  they  really  be  sugar-coated,  but  to  sweeten 
work  with  a  real  joy  in  the  doing  is  the  high  art  of  the 
genius  in  teaching." — "Education  by  Plays  and  Games," 
Johnson. 


READING 

(WORD  DRILLS) 


1.  BALLOON  GAN4E: 

Teacher  draws  a  bunch  of  colored  balloons  upon 
the  board  and  prints  the  name  of  the  color  upon  the 
balloon.  Each  child  is  called  upon  to  name  the  colors. 
The  colors  are  then  erased  and  two  children,  one  from 
each  row,  with  pointers,  compete  in  giving  the  words. 

2.  BOOK  FRIENDS: 

Place  in  the  moulding  above  the  blackboard 
pictures  to  represent  persons  mentioned  in  the  reading 
lesson.  Print  each  name  (Ruth,  Ned,  etc.)  on  a  slip 
of  paper  and  attach  it  to  the  proper  picture.  As  the 
names  are  read,  the  pupils  find  the  pictures  designated. 

3.  CATCH  ME   IF  \0V  CAN: 

The  pupils  put  their  heads  down  on  the  desks. 
The  teacher  places  word  cards  on  some  of  the  desks. 
At  a  signal,  the  children  raise  their  heads.  The  teacher 
goes  to  the  front  of  the  room  and  calls  the  words  on 
the  cards.  The  pupil  who  has  the  word  designated  by 
the  teacher  runs  to  the  front  of  the  room  while  he  is 
saying  the  word.  When  all  of  the  pupils  are  in  line, 
each  child  pronounces  his  word.      If  he  pronounces  his 

126 


"Cat 


word  correctly,  he  may  give  his  card  to  some  child 
who  is  sitting.  If  he  is  caught,  however,  he  must 
keep  his  card   for  the  next  game. 

CIRCLE  GAME: 


CIRCLE  GAME— WORD    DRILL 
Dover  Street   School 


Kindergarten  chairs  arc  arranged  in  a  circle. 
The  children  stand  behind  the  chairs  forming  an  outer 
ring.  The  words  are  placed  upon  the  chairs  facing  the 
children.  The  children  march  around  the  circle  until 
a  signal  to  stop  is  gi\cn.  I'.ach  child  then  names  the 
wor^l  in  front  of  him.  If  he  misses,  he  steps  out  of  ihe 
ring  and  studies  his  car^l. 


CLIML^  THE  LADDER: 

A  word  is  placed  on  each  rouni.!  of  a  la«.kier  (.Irawn 
upon  the  board.  Two  chiLlren  compete  to  see  who 
can  climb  to  the  U)[^  of  ihe  kKldcr  first. 

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Miiiraukce  Public  Schools 

6.  COUNTING  OUT: 

To  drill  a  particularly  troublesome  word,  such  as 
"said,  let  the  pupils  form  in  line  for  word  drill.  Hide 
several  cards  having  the  word  '"said"  in  a  pack  of 
drill  cards.  In  the  course  of  the  drill,  count  out  the 
pupils  as  they  pronounce  the  word  "said."  The 
game  is  continued  until  all  of  the  pupils  have  been 
counted  out. 

7.  CROSS  RACE: 

A  word  card  is  given  to  each  pupil.  As  the  chil- 
dren name  the  words  they  place  their  cards  along  the 
blackboard  ledge.  Two  children,  starting  at  opposite 
ends  read  the  words  as  quickly  as  they  can.  The 
child  who  succeeds  first  in  pronouncing  all  the  words 
is  the  winner. 

8.  DETECTIVE  GAME: 

Several  words,  selected  from  the  reading  lesson, 
are  placed  on  the  board.  A  pupil  is  chosen  to  stand  at 
the  board.  Another  child  gives  a  sentence  using  one 
of  the  words  on  the  blackboard.  As  quickly  as  the 
pupil  at  the  board  detects  the  word,  he  points  to  it 
and  pronounces  it.  He  is  allowed  to  retain  his  posi- 
tion as  long  as  he  is  able  to  find  the  \\ords. 

9.  FIRST  AND  LAST: 

Print  a  number  of  words  at  the  top  of  the  black- 
board, leaving  a  wide  space  between  the  words.  Dis- 
tribute corresponding  drill  cards  to  the  backward 
pupils.  At  a  given  signal,  each  pupil  matches  his 
word  by  placing  the  card  in  the  ledge  under  the  cor- 
responding word  on  the  blackboard.  The  pupil  who 
matches  his  card  first  is  the  winner. 

10.  FOLLOW  THE  LEADER: 

The  class  forms  in  a  line.  The  teacher,  standing 
at  the  head  of  the  line,  distributes  word  cards.  Each 
pupil  finds  the  word  on  the  board  which  matches  the 
word  on  his  card,  and  pronounces  it,  after  which  he 
returns    it    to    the    teacher,    and    pronounces    it    again. 

128 


"Games" 

He  then  runs  to  the  end  of  the  line  while  the  teacher 
gives  the  cards  to  the  pupils  next  in  line. 

1.  FROGGILIS  IX  A  POND: 

The  children  in  a  stooping  posture  are  grouped 
around  the  teacher.  She  flashes  a  word  card  before 
them.  The  child  who  says  the  word  first  hops  out  of 
the  pool.  The  children  (frogs)  who  are  left  after  a  few- 
minutes  of  drill,  must  go  into  another  pool  for  practice. 

2.  GUESSING  GAME: 

Have  a  list  of  five  words  on  the  hoard.  Let  one 
child,  the  guesser,  leave  the  room.  The  teacher  then 
points  to  one  of  the  words  (horse).  The  door-keeper 
admits   the   guesser,    who   points   to   a    word,    saying, 

"Is   it  '!'     The   guesser   is   gi\en   three  chances. 

If  he  fails  to  guess  the  word,  another  pupil  points  to 
the  correct  word,  saying.  "It  is  horse." 

3.  GOING  TO  JERUSALEM: 

Give  each  pupil  a  word  card.  Let  him  pronounce 
the  word  quickly  as  he  places  the  card  in  the  chalk 
tray.  Remove  a  card  and  let  the  pupils  march  around 
the  room  to  music.  When  the  music  stops,  the  chil- 
dren try  to  get  a  word.  The  one  w  ho  does  not  succeed 
goes  to  his  seat.  Each  pupil  pronounces  his  wor».l 
before  the  music  is  resumed  This  game  may  be  pla\  clI 
by  using  a  row  of  chairs  or  desks. 

4.  HIDE  AND  SEEK: 

The  teacher  hi^lcs  the  car^l  upon  which  the  new 
word  is  printed  in  a  small  pack  of  perception  cards 
(four  or  five)  which  have  been  cirillcd.  She  designates 
a  pupil  to  find  the  hidden  word.  If  he  succeeds,  he 
has  the  privilege  of  hiding  the  card  and  of  choosing 
another  pupil   to  continue  the  game. 

5.  I  U)P  SGOTGH: 

Allow  the  children  to  draw  a  hop  scotch  on  the 
floor  (yellow  chalk),  (jive  them  the  words  which 
require  drill  so  that  they  can  place  them  in  the  squares. 

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Milwaukee  Public  Schoois 

One  child  hops  and  says  the  words,  adhering  to  rules 
of  the  game  which  the  children  have  made.  When  he 
is  successful,   he  chooses  a  "hopper." 

lb.    JACK  IN  THE  BOX: 

Arrange  the  word  cards  in  the  chalk  tray,  placing 
a  card  for  each  child.  The  children  stoop  beneath  the 
cards.  The  first  child  in  the  row  jumps  up,  pronounces 
his  word.  Each  child  in  turn  does  the  same.  The 
child  at  the  foot  passes  to  the  head  and  the  game  is 
continued. 

17.  MAGIC  GATES: 

Choose  as  many  couples  as  you  have  words  to 
drill.  Each  couple  standing  in  a  line  clasps  hands 
forming  magic  gates.  The  teacher  flashes  a  word 
card.  The  first  child  in  a  line  pronounces  the  word, 
passes  through  the  magic  gates  to  the  next  gate.  This 
is  continued  until  the  line  has  passed  through  the  gates 
to  the  magic  garden. 

18.  MERRY-GO-ROUND: 

Cards  are  passed  to  three  roN\s  of  children.  A 
pupil,  acting  as  a  ticket  man,  collects  the  fares  (cards). 
The  children  who  know  the  words  on  the  cards  are 
permitted  to  ride  on  the  "merry-go-round,  "  (tops  of 
desks).  The  game  may  he  made  m.ore  realistic  by 
playing  a  lively  tune  on  a  phonograph. 

19.  MOVIE  GAME: 

Place  the  card  upon  w  hich  the  new  word  is  printed 
among  a  number  of  word  cards.  As  the  cards  are 
flashed  in  quick  succession,  the  pupils  watch  for  the 
new  word,  pronouncing  it  as  often  as  it  appears  on  the 
screen.     No  other  word  should  be  pronounced. 

20.  PARCEL  POST: 

Each  child  is  supplied  with  a  card  representing  a 
package.  The  children  mail  their  packages  by  pro- 
nouncing the  words  as  they  place  the  cards  along  the 
blackboard  ledge. 

130 


Ga 


mes 


21.     PICTURE  GAME: 


The  game  eonsists  in  associating  the  picture  of  an 
object  with  its  name.  The  teacher  holJs  up  a  picture; 
for  example,  dog.  The  pupil  who  has  this  word  runs 
to  the  front,  shows  his  card  to  the  class  and  pronounces 
the  word — do". 


22.     l^OST  OI-IT(T-:: 

Place  the  word  cards  in  a  picture  rack  or  along 
the  blackboard  ledge  where  they  can  be  easily  seen  by 
the  entire  class.  One  child  acts  as  postmaster.  The 
other  children  in  turn  (Ruth,  Jack,  Ned,  etc.),  call  for 
their  mail,  saying,  "Have  you  a  letter  for  Ruth^" 
The  postmaster  replies,  "Yes,  here  is  a  letter  for  Ruth." 
If  the  postmaster  makes  a  mistake,  a  new  postmaster 
is  appointed. 


23.     PUSSY  WANTS  A  CORNIER; 

Mark  off  corners  on  the  (loor.  Place  at  each 
corner  a  pupil  who  holds  a  drill  card.  Station  another 
pupil  as  pussy  at  the  center.  The  pussy  calls  two  words 
and  the  pupils  holding  these  words  must  exchange 
places.  While  the  exchange  takes  place,  the  pussy 
endeavors  to  secure  a  corner.  If  he  succeeds,  he  re- 
ceives the  card  from  the  pupil  w  ho  is  left  in  the  center. 
The  game  may  be  \'aried  by  ha\ing  the  pupils  exchange 
cards. 

The  "Transfer  Cjame"  also,  is  baseci  upon  an  ex- 
change of  drill  cards.  The  passengers  occupx"  kinder- 
garten chairs  arranged  in  a  circle  The  conductor  in 
the  center  of  the  circle  announces  the  transfers  which 
are  to  be  mai.lc.  W  hile  the  cards  are  being  exchanged, 
the  coni^luctor  endeavors  to  secure  a  seat. 


24.     RUNAWAY'  WORDS: 

A  few  pupils  stand  in  front  of  class  aiul  hold  wori.! 
cards  which  form  a  sentence.  The  other  pupils  close 
their  c\es  while  one  of  the  words  runs  away.  I  he 
child  who  names  the  missing  wori.!  takes  the  \acanl 
place   in   the  line. 

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Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

25.     SNAP  SHOTS: 

I'he  teacher  (lashes  the  word  cards  before  a  pupil 
who  tries  to  get  the  cards  from  the  teacher  by  pro- 
nouncing the  words.  The  teacher  keeps  all  the  cards 
that  the  pupil  cannot  read.  At  the  close  of  the  game, 
the  pupil  counts  the  cards  to  see  how  many  he  has 
earned.  The  game  may  be  varied  by  having  two  or 
more  pupils  compete  for  the  same  card. 

2b.     SPIN  THE  PLATTER: 

Pin  a  different  word  card  upon  eight  or  ten  chil- 
dren. Let  one  of  the  children  step  out  before  the 
others  and  spin  the  platter  (tin  pie  plate),  calling  out 
one  of  the  words  which  he  sees.  The  child  having 
this  word  upon  his  card  must  seize  the  platter  before 
it  stops  spinning.  If  he  fails  to  respond  or  if  he  re- 
sponds too  late,  he  loses  his  place  in  the  line  and  takes 
his  seat.  His  card  is  immediately  given  to  another 
pupil. 

27.  THE  FARMER  IN  THE  DELL: 

Have  cards  labeled  farmer,  dell,  wife,  etc.  Place 
the  "dell"  card  on  the  floor.  Hang  the  "farmer" 
card  on  the  boy  in  the  circle  and  the  "wife"  card  on 
a  girl,  the  "child"  card  on  a  boy.  This  alternation 
brings  boys  and  girls  into  the  game.  Play  the  game, 
each  choosing  as  the  song  dictates,  using  the  four 
cards  for  several  days.  When  the  children  become 
familiar  with  the  words  used,  add  the  next  few,  until 
all  of  the  words  are  easily  recognized.  At  the  end  of 
the  game,  the  boys  give  their  cards  to  boys  and  the 
girls  give  theirs  to  girls. 

28.  THE  GINGERBREAD  BOY: 

The  words  to  be  drilled  (kitty,  Ro\cr,  baby,  etc.,) 
are  placed  along  the  blackboard  ledge.  One  child  is 
chosen  to  be  the  gingerbread  boy  and  another  is 
selected   as   the   fo.x.     The   gingerbread   boy   says,    "I 

ran  away  from  (here  he  pronounces  all  of  the 

words  in  proper  order).  Should  he  miscall  a  word,  he 
is  seized  by  the  fox  who  corrects  the  error.  The  fox 
then  assumes  the  r(Me  of  gingerbread  boy  and  another 
fox  is  chosen. 

132 


"Games" 

29.  THE  PASSWORD: 

Designate  a  place  in  the  room  as  the  door  of  the 
lodge-room.  Choose  a  child  to  be  the  doorkeeper, 
and  let  the  other  children  in  turn  seek  admittance  to 
the  lodge.  \\  hen  the  doorkeeper  demands  the  pass- 
word, the  applicant  responds  by  pronouncing  five 
difficult  words  which  have  been  placed  upon  the  board. 
If  he  pronounces  the  words  correctly,  he  is  admitted 
to  the  lodge. 

30.  TICK,  TOCK,  TOW: 

Draw  a  circle  and  divide  it  into  sectors.  Place 
a  word  in  each  sector.  A  blindfolded  child  mo\es  the 
pointer  round  and  round  inside  the  circle  while  the 
class  repeats: 

Tick,  tock,   tow, 

Round   I   go; 

If  I   miss, 

ril  take  this. 

When  the  class  says  "this,"  the  child  touches  the 
blackboard  and  pronounces  the  word  in  the  sector 
that  he  touches. 

31.  UP  AND  DOWN: 

The  teacher  passes  word  cards  to  a  row  of  pupils 
standing  in  the  front  of  the  room.  liach  pupil  holds 
his  card  in  plain  \iew.  Another  pupil  is  chosen  to 
call  the  words.  As  he  names  a  word,  the  pupil  holding 
it  raises  it  quickly.  y\fter  all  of  the  cards  ha\e  been 
raised,  anotlncr  pupil  is  sclcctCLJ  to  call  down  the  w(m\!s. 

32.  WORD  RACE: 

Put  the  new  words  of  the  lesson  on  the  board. 
Select  two  pupils  for  the  game,  giving  each  pupil  a 
pointer.  As  the  teacher  pronounces  a  word,  each 
pupil  tries  to  win  a  point  bv  being  first  to  touch  the 
word.  Keep  the  score  on  the  board  to  ascertain  the 
w  inner. 


133 


M iliraukce  Public  Schools 
(I^HRASLi  L3RILLS) 

1.  COM  PI. LI' I  ON  GAiVIIi: 

(Chart.) 

Two  pupils  are  selected  as  contestants.  A  third 
pupil  reads  the  first  part  of  any  sentence  on  a  chart. 
The  contestant  who  succeeds  first  in  locating  the 
sentence  and  in  reading  the  remainder  of  it  scores 
one  point.     The  game  consists  of  ten  points. 

(Reader.) 

The  entire  class  rises.  Each  pupil  remains  stand- 
ing until  he  has  read  a  phrase.  The  pupils  are  counted 
out  in  the  order  in  which  they  \olunteer  responses. 
The  teacher  designates  a  page  of  the  lesson  and  reads 
the  first  part  of  any  sentence.  The  pupil  who  com- 
pletes the  sentence  is  counted  out.      For  example: 

Teacher:     See  the  birds  flying 
First  Pupil:     to  the  nests. 
Teacher:     The  nest  is 
Second  Pupil:     on  a  high  hough. 

2.  HOLIDAY  GAME: 

Teach  with  actions  the  Holiday  Song  published 
in  the  Progressive  Music  Series,  Book  One,  p.  15. 
Print  the  names  of  the  four  activities  on  separate 
cards,  as  "A\'e  will  take  our  fishing  rods."  Hang  these 
cards  on  four  children.  They  agree  upon  the  order 
in  which  they  will  enter  the  circle.  As  each  child 
enters,  the  children  forming  the  circle  sing  the  enter- 
ing sentence.  "The  Mulberry  Bush"  and  "The 
Farmer"  may  be  played  in  a  similar  manner. 

3.  MOTHER  GOOSE: 

Print  on  the  blackboard  a  number  of  phrases  or 
groups  of  related  \\ords  from  Mother  Goose  rhymes; 
for  example: 

up  the  hill 

of  water 

to  find   them 

beside  her 

134 


"Ga 


mes 


on  a  wall 
a  great  fall 
in  a  howl 

Choose  two  children  and  provide  each  of  them  with  a 
pointer.  The  teacher  asks  a  question  the  answer  to 
which  is  one  of  the  phrases  on  the  board;  for  instance, 
"Where  did  Humpty  Dumpty  sit?"  The  pupil  who 
points  to  the  phrase  first  and  reads  it  correctly,  scores 
one  point,  and  the  pupil  who  has  the  larger  score  at 
the  end  of  the  exercise  wins  the  game. 

4.  NEWSPAPER  GAME: 

Pass  to  each  pupil  a  clipping  from  a  children  s 
paper  or  from  the  children's  page  of  a  newspaper.  At 
a  given  signal,  each  pupil  underlines  the  phrases  he- 
ginning  with  the  following  words  which  have  been 
placed  on  the  hoard : 

at  of  to  in  on 

When  a  pupil  has  underlined  the  first  ten  phrases  con- 
taining any  of  these  words,  he  passes  his  paper  with 
his  name  upon  it  to  the  teacher,  w  ho  records  the  number 
in  the  order  of  presentation.  The  papers  are  then 
checked  for  accuracy  by  two  inspectors,  who  discard 
any  paper  ha\"ing  an  error  (omission  or  wrong  phrase). 

5.  PHRASE  RACE: 

Several  cards  upon  which  phrases  ha\c  been 
printed  are  placed  along  the  blackboard  ledge.  Two 
pupils  are  chosen  for  a  race.  A  third  pupil  gives  a 
sentence  using  one  of  these  phrases.  The  contestants 
look  for  the  phrase,  and  the  one  who  finds  it  first  takes 
the  card.  \\  hen  all  of  the  cards  ha\e  been  rcmo\cd, 
each  contestant  counts  his  cards  and  w  rites  the  number 
on  the  blackboard.  The  other  members  of  the  class 
announce  the  name  of  the  winner. 

6.  POINTER  GAME:: 

Select  from  the  reading  lesson  a  number  of  phrases 
or  word  groups.  Arrange  them  in  two  columns  hut 
in  different  order  in  each  column       I'or  exnmpk" 

135 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 


1 

okl  oak  tree 

1. 

hide  and  seek 

2 

in   the  shade 

2. 

for  the  winter 

3 

up  and  down 

3. 

with  the  birds 

4 

hick'  and  seek 

4. 

in  the  fall 

5 

with  the  birds 

5. 

the  old  tree 

6 

in   the   fall 

6. 

in  the  shade 

7 

the   littk'   birds 

7. 

okl  oak  tree 

8 

for  the  winter 

8. 

up  and  down 

q 

from  the  snow 

Q. 

from  the  snow 

f) 

the  okl   tree  . 

10. 

the  little  birds 

Choose  two  pupils  to  point  to  the  phrases  as  they  are 
read.  The  pupil  who  finds  the  greater  number  of 
phrases  first,   wins  the  game. 

7.  SEAT  GAME: 

Designate  a  Mother  Goose  rhyme,  as  Jack  and 
Jill.  (No.  9,  "Cards  for  Sentence  Matching  and 
Building.'")  The  pupils  build  the  rhyme  twice  by 
combining  the  word  and  the  phrase  "cut-ups."  The 
pupils  signify  by  rising  that  they  have  completed  the 
assignment. 

8.  TOP  AND  BOTTOM: 

Fasten  a  number  of  phrase  cards  by  means  of 
paper  clips  to  a  large  sheet  of  mounting  board  sus- 
pended from  the  blackboard  molding.  Select  two 
pupils  to  race  by  reciting  alternately,  the  mounted 
phrases,  one  pupil  beginning  at  the  top  and  the  other 
at  the  bottom.  Each  pupil  reads  all  of  the  phrases  by 
going  from  the  top  to  the  bottom  or  vice  versa.  If  a 
pupil  makes  a  mistake,  he  is  obliged  to  repeat  the 
phrase,  and  his  competitor-  gains  a  step.  The  pupil 
who  returns  to  his  starting-point  first  wins  the  game. 

9.  TRIP  TO  BOOKLAND: 

Place  a  number  of  phrase  cards  along  the  ledge  of 
the  blackboards  to  represent  stations.  The  conductor 
must  call  the  stations  by  reading  the  phrase  cards. 


136 


"Games" 
(ADDITIONAL  GAMES) 

SILENT  READING  GAME  No.    1: 

To  assist  the  pupils  in  getting  the  main  ideas  from 
a  reading  lesson,  place  upon  the  board  ten  questions 
requiring  brief,  definite  answers.  Allow  the  pupils 
to  read  silently  for  five  minutes.  Then  let  them  write 
the  answers  to  the  questions  and  exchange  papers  for 
correction.  Pupils  who  make  a  perfect  score  are  al- 
lowed a  preferred  occupation. 

SILENT  READING  GAME  No.   2: 

Allow  pupils  to  read  silently  for  a  few  minutes. 
Then  have  every  child  write  a  question.  Place  the 
questions  in  a  box  and  let  each  child  read  a  question. 
As  each  question  is  read,  the  pupils  try  to  find  the 
paragraph  containing  the  answer.  The  first  pupil  to 
locate  the  paragraph  gives  the  number  of  the  page 
and  reads  the  paragraph  aloud.  If  his  answer  is  cor- 
rect, he  receives  the  slip  of  paper  upon  which  is  w  ritten 
the  question  that  he  has  answered.  At  the  conclusion 
of  the  game,  the  pupils  count  their  slips  to  determine 
who  has  answcrci.1  the  most:  ^lucstions. 

TOPSY  TUR\'^'  CiAME: 

Choose  a  reading  lesson  having  either  a  hero  or  a 
heroine.  Change  the  name  of  the  hero  to  one  suitable 
for  a  heroine,  or  vice  versa.  To  sustain  the  new  char- 
acter requires  \igilancc,  inasmuch  as  all  of  the  pro- 
nouns  must   be  changed. 


LANGUAGE 


1.     ANIMAL  GAM  I-:: 

Purpose:     To  teach  the  use  of  the  articles  "a""  and  "an". 
Method:     Place    on    the    board    the    following    name-';    <>f 


animti 

lis: 

lion 

elephant 

i'lear 

eagle 

sheep 

tiger 

giraffe 

leopard 

zebra 

o\\  1 

137 


M iiivcmkee  Public  Schools 

The  leader  of  the  game  tells  some  characteristic  of  one 
of  the  animals. 

The  other  pupils  try  to  name  the  animal. 

Leader:       "I   am  thinking  of  an  animal  that  has 

a  trunk." 
William:     "Is  it  an  elephant?" 
Leader:       "Yes,  it  is  an  elephant." 

The   pupil    who    guesses    correctly    becomes    the    next 
leader. 

2.  BALL  GAME,  No.    1  : 

Purpose:  Drill  in  the  use  of  the  past  tense  of  the  verbs 
"throw"   and   "catch." 

Method:  A  child  throws  a  rubber  ball  to  another  child, 
saying:  "I  threw  the  ball  to  Ella."  If  Ella  catches 
it,  she  says,  "  I  caught  the  ball."  Ella  then  throws  it 
to  John,  and  says:  "I  threw  the  ball  to  John,"  etc. 
The  teacher  may  vary  the  game  by  asking:  "Who 
threw  the  ball  to  John^  Who  caught  the  ball?"  thus 
insuring  the  attention  of  all  the  members  of  the  class. 

3.  BALL  GAME,  No.  2: 

Purpose:  To  afford  practice  in  the  use  of  the  verbs  "  thre\\\ ' 
and   "caught." 

Method"  John  and  Ronald  stand  in  the  front  part  of  the 
room.  John  throws  the  ball  to  Ronald.  The  pupils 
in  the  first  row  continue  the  game.  The  first  pupil 
turns  to  the  second  pupil  and  asks:  "Who  threw  the 
ball?"  The  second  pupil  answers,  "John  threw  the 
ball  to  Ronald."  The  third  pupil  turns  to  the  fourth 
pupil  and  says:  "Who  caught  the  ball?"  The  fourth 
pupil  replies,  "Ronald  caught  the  ball,"  or  "Nobody 
caught  the  ball."  Ronald  then  throws  the  ball  to 
John  and   the  game  is  continued. 

4.  BIRTHDAY  GREETINGS: 

Purpose:  To  teach  appropriate  expressions  for  the  observ- 
ance of  birthdays. 

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''Games" 

Method:  A  record  of  the  birthday  of  each  child  is  kept  by 
the  teacher.  As  an  opening  exercise,  the  child  whose 
birthday  is  being  observed,  stands  near  the  teacher's 
desk.  The  teacher  names  several  other  pupils  to  come 
forward  and  offer  birthday  felicitations;  such  as,  "I 
wish  you  many  happy  birthdays,"  "Best  wishes  for 
your  birthday."  The  "birthday"  child  graciously 
thanks  each  well-wisher;  as  "Thank  you,  Mary," 
or  "Thank  you  for  your  good  wishes." 

5.     DEPART.MLiNT  STORE: 

Purpose:     To  enlarge  the  \ocabulary. 

Method:  Mourit  pictures  of  furniture,  clothing,  musical 
instruments,  gardening  tools,  cooking  utensils,  etc., 
to  represent  articles  to  be  sold.  Arrange  the  pictures 
along  the  blackboard  ledge,  grouping  them  in  depart- 
ments. One  child  acts  as  the  employer.  The  chil- 
dren who  wish  to  apply  for  positions  are  required  by 
the  employer  to  name  one  or  more  articles  in  a  depart- 
ment before  they  are  assigned  to  a  place  in  the  store. 
The  remaining  children  visit  the  store,  tell  the  sales- 
people what  they  wish  to  buy,  and  take  the  pictures 
with  them.  When  no  more  customers  appear  or  when 
the  store  is  "sold  out"  the  salespeople  are  dismissed. 


6.     FAULTY  SPEECH: 

Purpose:  To  correct  errors  due  to  literal  translations  of  a 
foreign  language;  such  as,  "by  the  store,"  instead  of 
"to  the  store." 

Method:     Sing  to  the  tunc  of  "  Lon^^lon  Bridge." 

Faulty  speech  is  falling  down, 
Falling  down,   falling  down. 
Faulty  speech  is  falling  down 
Tell  me  something. 

I   am  going  to  the  store, 
To  the  store,  to  the  store, 
I   am  going  to  the  store 
My  fair  lady. 

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Miiii'uukce  Public  Schools 

You  will  play  with  me,  won't  you, 
Me  won't  you^ 

You   will  play   with   inc,   won't  you? 
My   fair  lacly. 

Rose  came  over  to  our  house, 
To  our  house,  to  our  house, 
Rose  came  over  to  my  house 
My   fair  lacly. 

7.  FOLLOW  DIRECTIONS: 

Purpose:     To  teach  the  past  tense  of  certain  irregular  verbs. 

Method:  The  teacher  gives  simple  directions  for  pupils 
to  follow.  She  then  asks  the  pupils  to  tell  what  they 
did.     For  example: 

Teacher:  "Please  bring  the  ciust-pan  and  the  brush, 
|oe.  (Joe  follows  directions.)  What  did  vou  do, 
Joe^"  ^ 

Joe:     "I  brought  the  dust-pan  and  the  brush. 

The  game  should  be  planned  so  as  to  correct  common 
errors  in  the  use  of  the  past  tense. 

8.  FRIENDS: 

Purpose:  To  use  the  pronoun  "whom  "  instead  of  "who" 
in  certain  interrogative  sentences. 

Method:  Select  a  number  of  pupils  to  sit  with  a  friend. 
After  they  have  done  so,  they  run  to  the  front  of  the 
room  and  reply  to  the  question,  "With  whom  did  you 
sit?"  asked  by  pupils  in  a  row  designated  by  the  teacher. 
For  example:  the  first  pupil  says,  "With  whom  did 
■  you  sit,  Alice^  "  Alice  replies,  "I  sat  with  Helen." 
The  question,  "Whom  did  you  visit?  "  may  be  asked 
in  the  same  way. 

9.  GAME  OF  ACTORS: 

Purpose:     To  use  "is"   and   "arc  "  correctly. 

Method'  Two  rows  of  children  stand  at  opposite  sides  of 
the  room.  The  pupils  in  one  row  are  the  actors  and 
those    in    the    opposite    row    are    narrators.      The    first 

140 


"Games" 

actor  performs  some  simple  act,  as  running.  The  first 
narrator  describes  the  act  by  saying:  "The  boy  is 
runnin<4,  "  The  second  actor  joins  the  first  and  both 
perform  the  act.  The  second  narrator  says:  "'The 
boys  are  running."  In  the  course  of  the  game,  such 
expressions  as  "The\  are  walking."  "John  and  Mary 
are  playing,  "  are  used  to  indicate  plurality. 

10.  GUliSSlNG  GAME: 

Purpose:  To  afford  an  opportunity  lor  the  use  of  the 
interrogative  and  the  Lleclarative  sentence. 

Method:  y\  pupil  is  chosen  to  stand  facing  the  class. 
Behind  his  back  the  teacher  quickly  draws  on  the 
blackboard  a  simple  outline  picture  of  a  bird,  for  ex- 
ample. The  other  pupils  are  told  to  tell  something 
about  the  picture  but  not  to  name  it.  One  pupil  may 
say,  "  It  lives  in  a  tree"  ;  another,  "  It  can  fly "' ;  another, 
"It  can  sing."  After  the  teacher  has  obtained  ex- 
pressions from  a  number  of  children,  she  asks:  "What 
is  it?"'  The  child  who  was  chosen  to  name  the  picture, 
asks:  "Is  it  a  bireP ""  Ihc  other  chiLlrcn  rcpK': 
"Yes,   it   is  a  bird.  " 

The  same  device  may  be  used  by  having  one  row  of 
children  stand  before  the  class.  Give  each  child  a  picture 
of  some  common  object  and  tell  him  to  think  of  three  things 
to  say  about  it.  When  a  child  is  ready,  he  raises  his  hand. 
If  he  holds  a  picture  of  an  automobile,  he  may  say:  "It 
has  rubber  tires.  It  has  a  motor.  It  has  a  windshield. 
What  is  it^  "  Children  who  are  seated  try  to  guess  the 
answer.  When  the  pupil  who  is  describing  an  object  fails 
to  state  its  characteristic  features,  the  teacher  clirects  his 
thought   by  asking  suitable  questions. 

11.  I  lini-   AND  SI-T£K: 

Purpose:  \o  afford  practice  in  the  use  of  the  past  lense  of 
the  verbs  "hide"   and   "find.  " 

Metho^l:  I  roin  a  bo.x  containing  a  numi^er  of  toys,  six 
children  are  asked  to  select  objects  which  they  hide 
about  the  room  while  the  other  chiklren  close  their 
eyes  and  put  their  heads  on  their  desks.  After  all  of 
the  objects  have  been  hidden,  the  children  raise  their 

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Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

heads.  Then  ten  or  twelve  children  are  selected  to 
go  in  search  of  the  hidden  toys.  When  all  of  the  objects 
have  been  found,  the  children  .holding  the  toys  behind 
their  backs,  stand  in  front  of  the  room.  The  children 
who  are  seated  may  question  the  pupils  holding  the 
toys.  For  example:  Mary  may  say,  "What  did  you 
find,  johnj'"  John  shows  his  toy  and  replies:  "I 
found  a  top."  May  may  say,  "Who  hid  the  top?" 
The  pupil  who  hid  the  top  answers:  "  1  hid  the  top." 
The  game  is  continued  until  all  of  the  toys  have  been 
displayed. 

12.  LISTENING  GAME: 

Purpose:     To  drill  "It  is   I." 

Method:  One  child  stands  in  a  corner  and  covers  his  eyes. 
Another  child  goes  into  the  dressing  room.  The  first 
child  is  instructed  to  listen  when  the  child  is  leaving 
the  room  because  it  will  help  him  to  discover  who  has 
gone  if  he  knows  from  what  part  of  the  room  the  child 
leaves.  Uncovering  his  eyes  and  looking  around  the 
room  to  see  who  is  missing,  he  says:  "Who's  out 
there?"     The  child  in  the  dressing  room  answers: 

"It  is   I,   it  is   I 

We  will  clap  by  and   by 

If  you  guess 

W^ho  am  I,   who  am  I?  ' 

If  he  recognizes  the  voice  and  guesses  correctly,  the 
class  claps. 

13.  MISSING  WORD  GAME: 

Purpose:     Drill  in  writing  the  past  tense  of  irregular  verbs. 

Method:     Place"! it"  on  the  front  board.     Divide 

the  class  into  two  sections.  Each  pupil  writes  a  sen- 
tence beginning  with  "I"  and  ending  with  "it";  for 
example:  "I  chose  it,"  "I  heard  it,"  "I  did  it." 
The  section  which  has  the  greater  number  of  correct 
sentences  wins  the  game. 

14.  "MOTHER  GOOSE"  GAME: 

Purpose:  To  facilitate  the  memorization  of  Mother  Goose 
rhymes. 

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"Gaines" 

Method:  The  teacher  (or  a  class  leader)  recites  the  first 
line  of  a  Mother  Goose  rhyme  and  calls  upon  a  pupil 
to  complete  the  stanza.  This  game  may  be  used  as  a 
contest.  Pupils  take  places  as  in  a  spelling  match. 
The  first  pupil  recites  a  line  and  the  pupil  standing 
opposite  is  required  to  recite  the  next  line.  As  soon 
as  one  rhyme  is  completed,  another  rhyme  is  started 
by  the  next  pupil.  The  side  which  has  the  larger 
number  of  pupils  standing  at  the  conclusion  of  the 
game  is  declared   \ictorious. 

15.  OBJECT  GAME: 

Purpose:  To  teach  the  correct  use  of  the  expression,  "I 
ha\e." 

Method:  Several  children  stand  in  a  line  before  the  class. 
The  teacher  gives  some  object  to  each  pupil.  She 
then  asks  the  first  child:  "What  have  you,  John!'" 
John  replies:  "I  have  a  ball"  (or  whatever  the  object 
may  be).  He  then  turns  to  the  second  child  and  says: 
"What  have  you,  Mary?"  Mary  responds  and  turns 
to  the  third  child.  The  game  is  continued  until  all  of 
the  children  have  had  their  turn.  If  a  pupil  uses  an 
incorrect  expression,   he   forfeits  his  place. 

16.  OCCUPATION  GAME: 

Purpose:     To  increase  the  \ocabulary. 

Method:  Place  on  the  board  a  list  of  occupations:  dentist, 
artist,  oculist,  librarian,  conductor,  cashier,  chauffeur, 
florist.  Each  worker  tells  what  he  does  and  calls  upon 
someone  to  name  his  occupation. 

George:     "I  collect  tickets  on  a  railway  train.     What 

is  my  occupation?" 
John:     "  "I'ou  are  a  conductor." 

17.  OI-   WHAT  AM   I    rillXKlN'G^ 

Purpose:  To  form  the  habit  of  using  "isn"i"  instead  of 
"  ain't." 

Method:  A  chiki  steps  in  front  of  the  class  and  says:  "I 
am  thinking  of  something  in  this  room,  (aicss  what 
it  is."     Each  child  is  allowed  to  ask  one  question;    for 

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M iliraukcc   Public  SchocLs 

instance,  the  first  child  says,  "Is  it  made  of  wood?" 
He  receives  the  reply:  "No,  it  isn't  made  of  wood." 
The  second  child  asks:  "Is  it  made  of  glass''"  The 
reply  is,  "Yes,  it  is  made  of  glass."  The  third  child 
continues:  "Is  it  on  the  floor?"  "No,  it  isn't  on 
the  floor." 

Question:  "Is   it    on   the  desk?" 

Answer:  "Yes,   it   is  on   the  desk." 

Question:  "Is  it  the  vase?" 

Answer:  "No,  it  isn't  the  vase." 

Question:  "Is  it   the  inkwell?" 

Answer:  "Yes,   it  is  the  inkwell." 


18.     PICTURE  GAME: 

Purpose:  To  teach  the  use  of  "these  "  and  "those  "  in 
order  to  correct  the  misuse  of  the  pronoun  "them.  " 

Method:  Place  around  the  room  a  number  of  colored 
pictures  of  birds,  flowers,  fruits,  vegetables,  etc  One 
pupil  gives  a  partial  description  of  some  picture  while 
another  pupil  endeavors  to  locate  it  by  asking:  "Is 
it  this  apple ^  Is  it  these  apples^"  When  he  refers  to 
pictures  that  are  in  the  rear  of  the  room  or  at  some 
distance  from  him,  he  says,  "Is  it  that  bird?  Is  it 
tho-:e  birds?"  If  he  guesses  correctly,  he  may  keep 
the  picture  on  his  desk  until  the  game  is  concluded. 


19.     TAKING  A  WALK: 

Purpose:  To  establish  the  habit  of  using  the  preposition 
"to"  instead  of  "  by  "  in  such  phrases  as  "to  the  store, 
to  the  river,  etc.,  and  "  of  using  the  verb  "saw  in- 
stead of  "seen,"   to  express  past  time. 

Method:  The  children  take  an  imaginary  walk.  Upon 
returning,  each  child  in  turn  tells  where  he  went  and 
what  he  saw;  for  example:  "  I  went  to  the  ri\er,  and 
I  saw  two  boats.  ' 


20.     TELEPHONE  GAME: 

Purpose:     To  teach  the  expression  "It  is  I." 

144 


''Games" 

Method:  One  child  stands  with  his  back  toward  the  class, 
using  a  "make-believe"  telephone  attached  to  the  wall. 
A  toy  telephone  is  placed  on  the  desk  of  a  vacant  seat. 
Some  child  designated  by  the  teacher  slips  quietly  into 
the  vacant  seat  and  rings  the  bell  of  the  telephone 
immediately  calling  the  child  at  the  board,  "Hello, 
Russell'"  Russell  asks,  "Who  is  it^"  The  child  at 
the  seat  answers,  "It  is  I."  Russell  then  asks,  "Is  it 
Anita?"  If  correct,  the  class  answers,  "Yes,  it  is 
Anita." 


LANGUAGE   GAME     THE   LOST    CHILD 
First  Grade — Mineral  Street  School 


21.    ri  ii:  ix)s'r  r.iiiLD: 

Purpose:  To  determine  whether  each  chikl  can  lell  his 
home  address. 

Method:  A  boy  representing  a  policeman  patrols  a  street 
(front  aisle  of  the  room).  He  meets  a  child  crying. 
The  following  dialogue  ensues: 

Policeman:  What   is  the  matter,   little  girP 


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Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

Child:  I   cannot  find  my  home. 

Policeman:  What  is  your  name? 

Child:  My  name  is  Ruth  Olson. 

I^oliccman:  Where  do  you  live?  (or  What  is  your  ad- 
dress?) 

Child:  lb21   Davis  Street. 

Policeman:  Come  with  me,  little  girl.  I  will  take  you 
to  your  home.     (Leads  her  to  her  seat) . 

Child:  Thank  you. 

22.  THE  OLD  WOMAN  WHO  LIVES  IN  A  SHOE: 

Purpose:     To  use  the  past  tense  of  common  irregular  verbs. 

Method:  Choose  a  girl  to  impersonate  the  old  woman. 
She  calls  ten  or  twelve  children  and  assigns  a  household 
task  to  each  of  them.  The  tasks  may  be  written  on 
little  cards;  for  example:  "Sweep  the  floor,"  "Take 
care  of  the  baby."  The  children  go  to  various  places 
in  the  room  and  pretend  to  do  the  work  assigned  to 
them.  They  then  return  to  the  old  woman  who  in- 
quires what  each  child  did.  They  respond  by  using 
the  past  tense  of  the  verb  in  a  sentence;  as  "I  swept 
the  floor." 

23.  TOY  FARM: 

Purpose:  To  enlarge  the  child's  vocabulary  and  to  afford 
opportunity  for  using  irregular  verbs. 

Method:  Arrange  the  toy  farm  yard  on  kindergarten 
tables.  Let  several  children  visit  the  farm,  naming 
the  objects  as  they  point  to  them.  For  quick  observa- 
tion, let  a  row  of  children  march  around  the  table. 
Each  child  is  then  asked  to  name  something  that  he 
saw;    for  example:     "I  saw  a  duck." 

24.  VISITOR  GAME: 

Purpose:  To  drill  the  expressions  "It  is  I,"  "It  is  we,  she, 
he." 

Method:  Mary  closes  her  eyes.  A  child  runs  into  the 
cloakroom  and  raps  at  the  door.  Mary  says:  "Who 
is  there^"  The  child  responds,  "It  is  I."  If  Mary 
guesses  the  name  of  the  speaker,  she  takes  her  seat 

146 


''Games'^ 

and  the  visitor  takes  Mary's  place.     "It  is  we"  may 
be  similarly  taught  by  ha\ing  two  children  go  visiting. 

25.     WHO  HAS  THi:  I^UTTON? 

Purpose:     To  drill  upon  the  expression  "I  ha\'e"  and  "I 

hax'cn't." 

Method:  One  child  leaves  the  room.  During  his  absence, 
the  teacher  gives  a  button  to  some  pupil  in  the  room. 
The  child  who  left  the  room  is  then  called  in.  He  tries 
to  locate  the  pupil  who  has  the  button  by  asking: 
"Mary,  have  you  the  button^  "  or  "John,  have  you 
the  button?"  If  the  child  is  unable  to  locate  the  but- 
ton after  several  trials,  he  says:  "Has  anyone  the 
button?"  The  pupil  who  has  the  button  replies: 
"Yes,   I   have  the  button." 

26      "WORD  OPF^OSITRS"   (ANTOX^'MS) 

Purpose:      To  impress  the  meaning  of  words  by  contrast. 

Method:  The  teacher  arranges  the  pupils  in  a  line  as  for 
a  "spelling  down"  exercise.  She  then  pronounces  a 
word  (for  example,  big),  and  requires  the  first  pupil 
to  give  a  word  of  opposite  meaning  (little,  small). 
If  the  pupil  is  unable  to  do  so,  he  takes  his  seat. 

1  he  game  may  be  varied  by  ha\ing  a  contest  between 
two  rows  of  children  facing  each  other.  The  children  of 
one  row  act  as  challengers.  Each  challenger  is  supplied 
with  a  different  card  upon  which  is  printed  a  word  (as  high). 
The  pupil  who  is  standing  opposite  tries  to  give  the  correct 
answer.  The  score  is  recorded  for  the  row.  The  cards  are 
collected,  shuffled,  and  passed  to  the  children  in  the  other 
row.  The  exercise  is  repeated.  The  row  ha\ing  the 
higher  score  wins  the  game. 

27.     WORD  SERIES: 

Purpose:  To  teach  the  use  of  the  comma  in  a  series  of 
wori^ls. 

Mcthoi.1:  l:ach  pupil  chooses  the  name  of  some  fruit. 
The  teacher  begins  a  sentence  by  writing  on  the  black- 
board, "  I  like."  She  then  calls  upon  fwc  or  six  pupils 
to  complete  the  sentence.     Each  pupil  except  the  last, 

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Milwaukee  Public  Schoois 

writes  the  name  of  his  favorite  fruit  and  places  a  comma 
after  the  name.  The  last  pupil  writes  the  name  of  the 
fruit  that  he  has  chosen  and  places  a  period  after  it  to 
complete  the  sentence.  Illustration:  '"I  like  apples, 
peaches,   pears,   plums,   oranges,   and   bananas." 


REFERENCES  FOR  ADDITIONAL  GAMES 

'Language  Games,""   by  Myra  King: 
For  John  and  Me,"   p.    12. 
I   Saw,""  p.  28,   34,  42,   52. 
It  is   I,""  p.  6,    14,  64. 
I   Shall,"  p.  8,    10,  48. 
Sit  and  Sat,"  p.  82,  94. 
You  Were,  We  Were,'"  p.   32. 
Teach  and  Learn,"   p.   44. 
Did,""  p.   50. 
Lying,""   p.   70. 
Good  and  Well,"    p.   72. 

Games    and    Rhymes    for    Language    Teaching,  "    by 
Alhamhra  G.  Deming: 
"The  Run  and  Catch  Game,""  p.  26. 
"Who  Touched  Me^"""  p.   34. 
"If  I   Were,"  p.    15. 
"I   Went  into  the  Woods,"  p.   29. 
"Somebody  and  I  Are  Going  Somewhere,"  p.  52. 

"Language    Games    for    All    Grades,"    Alhambra    G. 
Deming: 

"Have  and  Shall,""  p.   39. 
"I   Shall,""  p.    19. 
"  I   Havent  Seen."   p.   25. 
"  It  was   I,""  p.   29. 


148 


"  Games" 

ARITHMETIC 


COUNTING  AND  RECOGNITION  Ol-   ITGURES 


1.  BOBB\'  WANTS  A  PLACE: 

Distribute  to  pupils  number  cards  haxing  separate 
numbers  from  1  to  20.  Let  the  children  form  a  circle 
with  a  leader  in  the  center.  The  leader  calls  two  num- 
bers, and  the  children  holding  these  numbers  are  re- 
quired to  exchange  places.  During  the  change,  the 
leader  endeavors  to  secure  a  place.  The  pupil  who  is 
left  in  the  center  becomes  the  ne.xt  "Bobby." 

2.  GIRCLE  GAME: 

Number  from  1  to  12  sections  of  a  circle  elrawn 
upon  the  floor.  A  pupil  hops  from  one  number  to 
the  ne.xt  and  reads  the  numbers.  If  he  makes  a  m.is- 
take,  another  pupil  takes  his  place.  The  game  may 
be  varied  by  bouncing  a  ball  the  number  of  times  indi- 
cated by  the  figure  in  a  section  designated  by  the 
teacher. 

3.  CLOCK  GAME: 

Draw  the  face  of  a  clock  on  the  floor.  Select 
twelve  pupils,  letting  each  pupil  choose  one  number 
to  indicate  the  hour.  Tap  a  bell  to  represent  the 
striking  of  the  clock.  The  pupil  who  is  standing  on 
thai  number  annotmces  the  hour  and  returns  to  his 
seat.  i  he  clock  continues  to  strike  until  all  of  the 
numbers  have  been  called. 

4.  ELEVATOR  (kAME: 

Ten  children,  hoLling  cards  numbcrc*.!  consecu- 
tively from  1  to  10,  stand  in  a  line  to  form  the  signal 
box  of  an  elevator.  Behind  the  line,  a  passenger 
signals  a  floor  by  tapping  the  child  holding  that  num.- 
bcr.  The  child  indicated  raises  his  card  and  calls 
the  number  of  the  floor. 

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Milwaukee  Public  Sckools 

5.  HEN  ANi:>  CmCKL-:NS: 

Choose  eleven  players  (one  hen  and  ten  chickens). 
The  hen  scatters  grains  of  corn  (or  any  counting  ma- 
terial) on  the  table  or  the  floor.  She  gives  the  signal 
for  the  chickens  to  pick  up  the  grain  by  calling,  "Cluck '. 
C.\uck\"  The  chicken  that  secures  the  greatest  num- 
ber of  grains  is  the  winner. 

6.  PICTURE  GAME: 

Make  a  set  of  number  cards  from  1  to  10  inclusive, 
by  mounting  small  silhouette  pictures.  Make  a  sim- 
ilar set,  using  small  colored  pictures  from  magazines 
or  catalogues.  Distribute  the  cards  to  two  groups  of 
children.  At  a  signal,  each  group  arranges  the  cards 
in  proper  sequence  from  one  to  ten  along  the  black- 
board ledge.  The  group  that  finishes  first  wins  the 
Hame. 


7.     RICH  MAN,  POOR  MAN: 

Give  to  each  child  in  the  class  any  number  of 
splints  from  1  to  10.  A  leader,  standing  in  front  of 
the  line  of  children,  says  to  the  first  child,  "  I  ha\'e 
four  splints.  How  many  have  you!'"  The  child 
replies  by  telling  the  number  of  sticks  that  he  holds, 
stating  whether  his  number  is  greater  or  less  than  the 
number  held  by  the  leader.  Thus:  "I  ha\'e  six 
sticks;  I  have  two  more  than  you  have."  If  the 
child  addressed  has  a  greater  number  of  sticks  than  the 
leader,  he  passes  to  the  right  of  the  leader  and  is  a 
"rich  man."  If  he  has  less  than  the  leader,  he  passes 
to  the  leader's  left  and  is  a  "poor  man." 


8.     THE  MISSING  NUMBER: 

Arrange  in  the  chalk  trough  the  number  cards 
from  1  to  20.  Ask  a  pupil  to  leave  the  room  for  a 
moment,  and  remove  one  of  the  number  cards.  Upon 
his  return,  ask  him  to  tell  which  number  is  missing. 

150 


"Games" 

Aonrriox 

APARTMENT  HOUSE: 

Distribute  all  the  combination  cards  to  the  class. 
The  teacher  shows  a  card  indicating  the  sum  of  two 
numbers,  calling  it  the  number  of  the  apartment 
house.  All  of  the  tenants  show  their  cards  by  running 
to  the  front  of  the  class.  Each  in  turn  reads  his  card, 
"6  and  4  are  10,"  "8  and  2  are  10,"  etc.  The  game  is 
continued  until  all  of  the  cards  have  been  collected. 


2.  BEAN  BAG: 

The  game  is  played  by  rows,  each  row  having  a 
leader.  The  leader  says  4  plus  2  or  some  other  com- 
bination of  two  digits,  and  throws  the  bag  to  some 
pupil  in  the  line.  The  latter  must  give  the  sum  as  he 
catches  the  bag.  He  then  becomes  the  leader.  If  a 
pupil  fails  to  answer  correctly,  he  returns  the  bag  to 
the  leader.  After  a  pupil  has  acted  as  leader,  he  is 
counted  out.  The  game  is  continued  until  onl\-  one 
pupil   remains. 

3.  CLAP  IN,  CLAP  OUT: 

Distribute  two  sets  of  drill  cards,  one  set  ha\ing 
the  combinations  and  the  other  set  having  the  sums. 
Divide  the  class  into  two  divisions.  The  pupils  having 
answer  cards  remain  in  their  seats  while  the  other 
pupils  go  outside  of  the  room.  The  children  in  the 
room  "clap  in  '  the  other  pupils,  who  then  sit  with 
their  partners  (oupils  holding  the  cards  ha\ing  the 
sums).  Any  pupil  who  makes  a  mistake  is  clapped 
out,  and  he  must  tr\-  again  to  (liul  the  right  partner. 

4.    domin(m:s- 

Pass  large  domino  cards  to  the  class.  Place  drill 
cards  from  2  to  12  inclusixe  along  the  blackboard 
ledge.  The  leader  passes  to  the  blackboard  ledge, 
points  to  a  number  anJ  asks:  "Who  has  sc\cn^" 
The  pupils  who  ha\e  combinations  making  sc\cn  run 
to  the  side  of  the  room  while  saying  their  combinations; 
for  example:     "Eour  an^l  three  are  se\en,"  etc. 

15  1 


Miitvaiikcc  Public  Schocls 

A  variation  of  the  game  consists  in  placing  domino 
cards  around  the  room,  and  distributing  to  the  pupils  a 
set  of  number  cards  having  corresponding  sums.  The 
pupils  pass  to  the  blackboard  and  place  the  sum  on  the 
prc)[^cr  LJomino  card,  giving  the  combination  w  hile  so  doing. 

5.  ['INDING  THE  COMBINATION; 

Place  upon  the  blackboarLl  the  digits  whose  SLim 
is    II,   as   follows: 

9  +  2 
8  +  3 
7  +  4 
6   +    5 

The  leader  selects  one  of  the  combinations.  The  other 
pupils  try  to  find  the  combination  by  asking  questions 
in  turn.     For  example: 

First  Pupil:       "Are  you  thinking  of  8   +    3^'" 
Leader:  "No,    I    am    not    thinking    of    3    +   8" 

(reversing  the  order). 
Second  Pupil:  "Are  you  thinking  of  6   +    5'!" 
Leader:  "Yes,    I   am  thinking  of  5    +   6." 

The  pupil  who  guesses  the  combination  becomes  the 
next   leader. 

6.  FORWARD  AND  BACKWARD: 

Distribute  all  the  drill  cards  for  the  addition  table 
of  2  s.  Distribute,  also,  the  corresponding  sums, 
(^all  on  one  pupil  to  show  the  class  his  card:  for  ex- 
ample: "b  +  2."  The  child  who  holds  the  card 
with  the  re\'erse  expression,  "2  +  b"  stands  beside 
the  fu-st  child.  Then  the  child  who  holds  the  card 
with  the  sum  "8"  Joins  the  other  two  children.  The 
first  child  says:  "6  +  2  =  8":  the  second  child, 
•'2  +  b  =  8":  and  the  third  child  savs,  "8  =  b  +  2 
and  8  =  2  +  b." 

7.  TAPPING: 

One  child  lea\es  the  room.  Cards  with  the  new 
combination  (6  and  4)  are  given  to  some  of  the  other 
children  who  conceal  them  in  their  desks.     The  first 

152 


"Games 

child  returns  to  the  room,  touches  a  pupil  and  says: 
"I  am  looking  for  10.  Have  you  6  and  4!'"  The 
child  answers,  "No,  I  havent  b  and  4."  Continue 
the  game  until  the  card  is  found.  For  re\iew  the 
game  may  be  played  with  all  of  the  combinations  of 
10  concealed. 

8.  QUICK  P01\T[-RS: 

Place  upon  the  blackboard  in  miscellaneous  order 
the  sums  of  the  forty-five  combinations.  Two  pupils, 
supplied  with  pointers,  compete  in  pointing  to  the 
answers  to  questions  asked  by  the  other  pupils  in  turn. 
For  example:  when  a  pupil  says  "8  plus  7",  the  child 
pointing  to  fifteen  first  wins  a  point.  The  racer  who 
has  the  higher  score  at  the  conckision  of  the  exercise 
wins  the  game. 

9.  RAlLRe:)AD  GAME: 

The  children  stand  beside  their  respective  seats. 
The  rows  of  empty  seats  are  called  "express  trains." 
The  teacher  flashes  the  drill  cards,  giving  each  pupil 
a  question.  The  pupils  who  give  the  correct  answers 
immediately  take  seats  in  the  express  train.  Those 
w  ho  are  left  standing,  endeavor  to  catch  the  next  train 
which  is  a  "local."  The  pupils  who  require  a  third 
chance  must  take  a  "freight"  train. 

10.  REACHING  THE  GOAL: 

Arrange  in  a  horizontal  line  several  short  examples 
in  any  of  the  fundamental  operations,  thus: 

11         II  II  II  11  II  II          II          II 

—2      —4     —6     —0     —8     —7     —2      —5 


Two  pupils,  l^cginning  at  opposite  en».ls,  write  the 
answers.  The  race  ends  w  hen  the  pupils  meet.  I  he 
one  ha\  ing  the  greater  nimibcr  of  correct  answers  w  ins. 

I.     R1;L.\Y   RACl-:: 

The   teacher  selects   two  groups  of  players   with 
the  same  number  in  each  group.     She  marks  on  the 

I  ^'  3 


M ilwaukee  Public  Schools 

blackboard  in  front  of  each  row  the  space  allotted  to 
it,  writing  an  example  in  each  space.  Each  leader  is 
provided  with  a  piece  of  chalk.  At  the  command, 
"Go!"  the  race  begins.  Each  leader  writes  the  answer 
to  his  example  and  quickly  passes  the  chalk  to  the 
player  behind  him.  The  side  which  finishes  first  and 
makes  a  perfect  score  is  the  winning  team. 

12.     RUNNING  THE  GAUNTLET: 

The  pupils  in  two  rows  stand  on  opposite  sides  of 
their  desks,  leaving  a  clear  aisle  for  the  runner,  to 
whom  they  alternately  ask  the  sum  of  two  digits 
(one  of  the  forty-five  combinations).  If  the  runner 
fails  to  answer  correctly,  a  new  runner  is  selected.  If, 
however,  he  succeeds  in  running  the  gauntlet  by 
answering  all  of  the  questions,  his  name  is  placed  on 
the  arithmetic  roll. 


3.     TABLE  TAG: 

Use  any  arithmetical  table  in  playing  the  game. 
Select  six  pupils  to  form  a  ring  by  facing  outward. 
Place  a  pupil  in  the  center  as  "tagger.  "  The  pupils 
who  are  seated  give  examples  in  turn.  As  each  ex- 
ample is  given,  the  tagger  touches  on  the  back  any  one 
of  the  six  pupils  who  must  give  the  answer.  If  he  fails, 
he  takes  his  seat  and  the  pupil  who  gave  the  problem 
takes  the  vacant  place. 


4.     TWO  DEEP: 

Pupils  form  a  double  circle  with  the  pupils  in 
the  inner  circle  standing  directlx'  in  front  of  those  in 
the  outer  circle.  The  teacher  in  the  center  of  the  circle 
gives  an  example  and  immediately  points  to  any  of 
the  couples.  If  the  pupil  in  the  inner  ring  answers 
correctly  first,  he  retains  his  position;  if,  however,  the 
pupil  in  the  outer  ring  answers  first,  they  exchange 
places.  The  comparative  strength  of  the  contestants 
is  indicated  by  the  number  of  players  in  the  inner 
circle  who  were  forced  to  yield  their  positions. 

154 


"Games" 
ADDITION  OR  SUBTRACTION 

FLASH  CARD  GAME: 

The  pupils  in  two  or  more  rows  compete  for  a 
colored  star  to  be  credited  to  their  record  on  the  black- 
board. Use  the  drill  cards  having  the  single  numbers 
from  0  to  10.  The  pupils  add  mentally  a  gi\en  number 
as  the  cards  are  flashed.  Each  pupil  in  turn  announces 
the  sum  of  3  and  the  number  on  his  card.  For  sub- 
traction, select  any  card  indicating  the  sum  of  two 
digits,  as  13.  When  the  cards  are  flashed  (8,  5,  9,  etc.), 
each  pupil  in  turn  announces  the  missing  number  in 
the  combination   (8  +  ^  =   1 3)   (5  -|-  '  =   13),  etc. 

POCKET  GAME: 

Make  a  shoe  bag  with  ten  small  pockets.  For 
drill  in  addition,  pin  on  each  pocket  as  a  label  the  sum 
of  two  numbers;     for  example: 


9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

Distribute  to  the  pupils  the  drill  cards  ha\ing  two 
numbers  whose  sum  is  9  or  more.  Determine  the  time 
required  for  the  pupils  to  put  the  combination  cards 
into  the  proper  pockets.  For  subtraction,  distribute 
the  subtraction  drill  cards,  and  use  the  cards  indicating 
remainders  as  pocket  labels. 

3.     TABLE  GAME: 

Use  a  number  of  cards  (3  in.  .\  5  in.),  having  an 
addition  or  a  subtraction  fact  on  one  side  and  the 
answer  on  the  other.  Place  on  the  table  with  the 
answer  side  down  two  or  three  times  as  many  cards  as 
there  are  players.  A  pupil  begins  the  game  by  choosing 
one  of  the  cards  and  telling  the  answer.  We  xcrifics 
his  answer  by  looking  at  the  reverse  side  of  the  card. 
If  his  answer  is  correct,  he  retains  the  card;    but  if  it 


155 


M Hiraiikce  Public  Schools 

is  incorrect,  he  returns  the  card  to  the  table.  Each 
pupil  takes  his  turn.  Additional  cards  are  dealt  out 
as  needed.  The  player  having  the  most  cards  at  the 
close  of  the  game  is  the  winner. 

4.     TRAIN  GAME: 

Before  starting  the  game,  the  teacher  designates 
a  number  which  is  to  be  added  or  subtracted  to  the 
number  on  each  flash  card.  When  a  pupil  is  given  a 
card,  he  must  immediately  tell  the  answer,  thus  proving 
that  the  wheels  of  his  car  are  in  good  condition  for  the 
trip.  He  then  takes  his  place  on  the  track  (side  of  the 
room)  and  couples  his  car  to  the  preceding  car  by 
placing  his  hands  on  the  hips  of  the  pupil  in  front  of 
him.  If  the  pupil  fails,  he  goes  to  the  repair  shop 
(corner  of  the  room).  If  he  can  give  the  correct  answer 
after  all  have  had  an  opportunity,  he  takes  his  place 
at  the  end  of  the  train.  If  he  fails  again,  some  pupil 
volunteers  to  mend  his  broken  wheel  by  giving  him 
extra  drill.  When  all  are  ready,  the  engine  starts  and 
the  train  mo\'es  in  a  verv  realistic  manner. 


ADDITION  OR  MULTIPLICATION 

BLACKBOARD  BALL  GAME: 

Draw  a  large  square  and  di\ide  it  into  nine  sm.all 
squares,  numbering  the  squares  from  1  to  9.  A  pupil 
stands  at  a  short  distance  from  the  board  and  throws 
a  soft  ball.  As  soon  as  he  strikes  a  number,  he  multi- 
plies it  by  a  number  (6,  etc.),  placed  at  the  right  of 
the  large  square,  and  calls  his  answer.  If  the  ball 
goes  outside  the  square,  the  pupil  calls  "naught."  All 
pupils  keep  the  score,  but  an  of^cial  scorekeeper  keeps 
the  record  on  the  blackboard.  Each  pupil  may  have 
two  chances.  The  pupil  having  the  highest  score 
wins  the  game. 

BOWLING  GAME: 

Draw  an  alley  on  the  board,  numbering  the  ten 
pins.     Draw  a  ball  rack  in  which  there  are  three  or 

156 


''Games" 

four  balls,  each  bearing  a  different  number  to  indicate 
the  number  of  the  arithmetic  table.  At  first,  use  only 
one  ball  for  drill.  To  play  the  game,  either  the  teacher 
or  a  leader  points  to  one  of  the  balls  as  the  m.ultiplicr. 
The  pupil  then  multiplies  the  number  on  the  pirs  by 
the  nimibcr  on  the  ball.  A  bowling  score  should  be 
kept. 

3.  DOWN  Tl  1L:  LlXi:: 

Numl^crs  from  0  lo  10  inclusi\"e  arc  placed  miscel- 
laneously at  intervals  in  a  row  across  the  blackboard. 
A  pupil  stands  under  each  number.  As  the  teacher 
designates  a  table  for  drill  (addition  or  multiplication) 
the  pupil  looks  at  his  number  and  then  answers.  For 
example:  If  his  number  is  6,  and  the  table  assigned 
for  his  drill  is  the  multiplication  tables  of  7"s,  the  pupil 
answers  "42."  After  the  last  pupil  has  recited,  be 
runs  to  the  head  of  the  line,  and  each  pupil  mox'cs 
down  one  place.  In  this  way,  each  child  moves  down 
the  line,  gi\ing  every  answer. 

4.  ENDLESS  CHAIN: 

The  leader  names  two  digits  and  gi\es  their 
product.  As  rapidly  as  possible,  the  other  pupils 
give  facts  of  the  multiplication  tables  by  repeating 
the  secon'J  number  gi\xn  by  the  preceding  pupil  as 
follows: 

6  X  8  =  48;      8x9  =  72;      9X0=   54,  etc. 

As  each  pupil  recites,  he  Joins  the  leader.  The  game 
is  continued  until  all  of  the  pupils  hax'C  joinci^l  the-  lini' 

5      GROCI-R^'  SPI-CIAl.S: 

Place  on  the  blackboar^l  a  list  of  articles  ai.l\  en  i.se^l 
for  special  sale  as  follows: 

Campbell  s  Pork  an^l  Beans,  (can).  .  .  .    ^c 

In^lian   Maid   Peas   (can) •'^'c 

bancy   Prunes   (pound) 10c 

None  Such  Milk  (can) lie 

Sweet  Corn  (can) 7: 

Honey  Boy  Sardines  (can) Qc 

Pink  Salmon  (can) 12c 

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Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

Divide  the  class  into  two  groups.  After  the  mul- 
liplication  table  of  6's  has  been  learned,  let  each  pupil 
find  the  cost  of  six  cans  or  pounds  of  an  article  listed. 
The  first  player  says:  "Six  cans  of  Campbell's  Pork 
and  Beans  at  9  cents  a  can,  will  cost  54  cents."  The 
first  pupil  on  the  opposite  side  says:  "Six  cans  of 
Indian  Maid  Peas  at  8  cents  a  can,  will  cost  48  cents." 
The  side  having  the  fewer  errors  wins  the  game. 

6.  \4y\RBLB  GAME: 

At  one  end  of  a  shallow  box  paste  upright  parti- 
tions forming  ten  little  stalls.  Mark  these  from  1  to 
10.  Paste  a  few  little  handicaps  in  the  field  here  and 
there.  Make  marbles  from  2  to  9.  Play  the  game  in 
the  following  manner:  Each  takes  a  turn  rolling  the 
"2"  marble  from  the  upper  end  of  the  box.  The  num- 
ber of  the  stall  in  which  the  marble  comes  to  rest 
must  be  multiplied  by  2  and  the  product  is  the  number 
of  points  registered  in  the  score.  Each  marble  to  "9" 
is  played  in  turn,  being  used  as  a  multiplier.  If  a 
player  makes  a  mistake  in  giving  his  product  or  if  his 
marble  comes  to  rest  at  a  handicap,  he  gets  a  zero  for 
his  score.  The  player  who  has  the  highest  number  of 
points  at  the  close  of  the  game  is  the  winner. 

7.  PAY  AS  YOU  ENTER; 

Each  pupil  has  a  card  with  one  of  the  numbers 
from  1  to  10  inclusive.  The  pupils  form  in  single  file 
to  enter  the  car,  paying  their  fare  to  the  conductor 
(teacher).  As  each  pupil  reaches  the  table,  the  teacher 
gives  him  a  number.  He  pays  his  fare  by  multiplying 
this  number  by  the  number  on  his  card.  If  he  answers 
correctly,  he  passes  to  his  seat;  if  he  fails,  he  moves  to 
the  end  of  the  line  after  his  mistake  has  been  corrected. 


8.     PL.AYING  BEANS: 

Place  on  the  board  a  number  (as  3)  in  a  small 
circle.  Below  this  place  two  rows  of  digits  w  ith  the 
same  number  of  figures  in  each  row;    as 

X    3 
2473      6  58729 

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"Games" 

The  circle  represents  the  hole  into  which  the  lower 
numbers  or  shooters,  are  to  be  shot.  Let  a  child  begin 
at  one  end  and  another  child  at  the  other  end,  writing 
below  each  number  the  product  obtained  by  multi- 
plying that  number  b\'  3.  The  pupil  who  finishes  his 
row  first  is  accountei.1  the  w  inner. 

9.  SPIDHR  WEB: 

Draw  a  picture  of  a  spider's  web  on  the  blackboard 
and  place  the  numbers  from  1  to  10  on  the  radii  of 
the  circle.  The  "spider,  "  a  child  with  a  pointer,  is 
called  +  3.  He  chooses  a  pupil  to  be  the  "Ay."  The 
fly  gives  the  combinations.  If  he  misses,  he  is  caught 
by  the  spider  and  another  fly  is  chosen.  When  a  fly 
gives  all  of  the  combinations  correctly,  he  becomes 
the  spider. 

10.  SPINNING  Tin:  ARROW: 

Two  children  play  the  game  with  a  third  child 
acting  as  referee.  The  numbers  are  arranged  in  irreg- 
ular order  upon  a  cardboard  similar  to  the  dial  of  a 
clock.  Arrows,  constructed  of  wood  with  the  single 
digits  painted  on  either  end,  are  spun  around  the  dial. 
The  sum  of  the  number  on  the  arrow  and  the  number 
on  the  dial  is  given  as  soon  as  the  arrow  stops  spinning. 
The  player  who  gives  the  answer  first  is  credited  with 
one  point  and  has  a  chance  to  Spin  the  Arrow .  The 
player  who  has  the  larger  score  wins  the  game. 

11.  TEN   IN  LINE: 

Ten  children  stand  in  line  in  front  of  the  class. 
Ten  cards,  each  having  a  number  from  1  to  10  inclusive, 
are  distributed  to  the  pupils  in  line  .\  leader  calls 
one  of  the  numbers,  for  example,  b  with  plus  1.  2,  3, 
etc.  The  child  who  holds  that  number  replies,  stating 
the  sum.  To  illustrate:  When  the  leader  calls  b 
plus  2,  the  pupil  holding  the  carel  marke^l  O  replies 
"iS  '.  If  a  pupil  does  not  answer  t|uickly,  another 
pupil  takes  his  place.  I  or  multiplication,  the  leader 
calls  "6  X  2,"  etc.  This  game  may  be  varied  to  pro- 
vide for  participation  by  a  larger  number  of  the  class  by 
having  pupils,  miscellaneousK'  calkvl  upon  by  the 
teacher,   state  the  examples 

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Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

ADHI  I  K)N,  SUBTRACrnOX,  MUL  TlinjCATIOX, 
OR  DIVISION 

1.  CAPTIVl-:: 

The  pupils  stand  in  two  rows  facing  each  other. 
The  teacher  gives  an  example  alternately  to  each  row. 
Should  an  incorrect  answer  be  given,  any  pupil  on 
cither  side  is  permitted  to  give  the  correct  answer. 
The  first  pupil  to  correct  the  answer  may  claim  for  his 
side  the  pupil  who  made  the  error.  The  side  having 
the  greater  number  of  pupils  at  the  close  of  the  game 
wins. 

2.  CARD  RACE: 

Choose  two  pupils  of  approximately  equal  ability. 
Flash  the  drill  cards,  awarding  each  card  to  the  pupil 
who  gives  the  answer  to  it  first.  When  all  of  the  cards 
have  been  used,  the  pupil  who  has  the  greater  number 
wins  the  race. 

3.  ERASER  GAME: 

On  either  side  of  a  vertical  line  drawn  on  the 
blackboard  write  the  answers  to  any  arithmetical 
table.  Two  children  are  provided  w  ith  erasers.  The 
other  children  in  turn  ask  questions  requiring  the 
numbers  on  the  board  for  answers.  The  first  contestant 
to  announce  the  correct  answer  to  any  example  erases 
the  number.  The  winner  is  the  first  one  who  succeeds 
in  erasing  all  of  the  answers. 

4.  FORFEITS: 

Using  the  flash  cards,  select  three  pupils  for  a 
race.  The  pupil  who  first  says  the  answer  to  an  ex- 
ample on  a  card  recei\'es  that  card.  During  the  pro- 
gress of  the  game,  if  a  pupil  makes  an  error,  he  forfeits 
his  entire  pack  of  cards.  The  contestant  who  has  the 
greatest  number  of  cards  at  the  close  of  the  game  is 
the  winner. 

5.  HOP  SCOTCH: 

Draw  a  diagram  for  the  game  of  Hop  Scotch  on 
the  blackboard,  putting  the  combinations  in  the  spaces. 

IbO 


"Games" 

Each  pupil  hops  with  a  pointer.  If  he  fails  to  give 
the  correct  answer,  he  writes  his  initials  in  the  square 
having  that  example.  \\  hen  he  hops  again,  he  en- 
deavors to  advance  his  name  as  man\-  spaces  as  pos- 
sible. 

6.     IN  THE  RING: 

The  pupils  form  a  ring  with  the  teacher  in  the 
center.  The  teacher  asks  a  question  about  one  of  the 
fundamental  number  facts  and  immediately  designates 
some  pupil  to  answer  it.  If  he  fails  to  reply  or  if  he 
gives  the  wrong  answer,  he  must  step  inside  the  circle. 
He  remains  in  the  ring  until  he  answers  a  question 
more  quickh'  than  another  pupil  to  whom  a  C|Ucstion 
is  directed. 


7.     PICKING  APPLES: 

Draw  an  apple  tree  on  the  blackboard.  Cut 
apples  out  of  red  paper  and  write  upon  each  a  question 
about  a  number  fact  to  be  drilled.  Pass  the  apples 
to  several  children  and  let  them  hold  the  apples  on  the 
tree.  One  pupil  picks  the  apples  by  giving  the  correct 
answers  to  the  questions;  for  example:  5  -|-  4  =  9; 
7x3  =  21,  etc.  The  children  who  hold  the  apples 
refuse  to  gi\c  them  to  the  picker  unless  he  answers 
correctly. 


SPELLING 


1.  ALPHABET  GAME: 

Purpose:     To  drill  the  alphabet. 

Method:  Distribute  the  alphabet  cards  to  twenty-six 
pupils.  Select  another  pupil  as  leader.  As  the  leader 
names  the  letters  in  proper  sequence,  the  pupils  form 
in  line  in  front  of  the  class.  Then,  beginning  with 
"a",  each  pupil  names  his  card  and  returns  it  to  the 
leader. 

161 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

2.     BASEBALL  GAME: 

Purpose:     To  enliven  drill  by  means  of  team  work. 

Method:  The  teacher  chooses  a  pupil  as  captain.  The 
captain  chooses  eight  other  pupils  to  belong  to  his 
team.  Another  pupil  is  score  keeper.  The  team  comes 
up  to  bat.  Various  places  in  the  room  are  designated 
as  first,  second,  and  third  bases,  and  a  home  plate. 
The  pitcher  pitches  a  word  to  the  first  person  on  the 
team.  If  he  spells  it  correctly,  he  may  pass  to  first 
base.  If  he  misses,  he  must  take  his  seat.  This 
counts  an  "out".  The  second  person  is  given  a  word. 
If  he  spells  it  correctly,  he  may  go  to  first  base,  and 
the  pupil  who  was  at  first  base  passes  to  second  base. 
Whenever  the  member  of  a  team  spells  a  word  cor- 
rectly, the  players  advance  one  base.  Whenever  a 
pupil  reaches  the  home  plate,  the  scorekeeper  takes 
count  of  it.  The  team  continues  to  play  until  three 
"outs"  have  been  made.  Another  team  plays  until 
it  makes  three  "outs".  The  team  which  makes  more 
"runs"  before  it  makes  three  "outs"  wins  the  game. 
Those  who  make  "outs"  must  \\rite  their  misspelled 
words  on  the  board. 


3.     DEFINITION  GAME: 

Purpose:  To  determine  whether  pupils  know  the  meaning 
of  the  words  in  their  spelling  lessons. 

Method:  Tell  the  pupils  to  turn  to  a  certain  page  in  their 
spelling  books.  Let  each  pupil  write  a  list  of  ten  words 
designated  by  the  teacher  who  gives  a  simple  definition 
of  the  word  without  pronouncing  it.  For  example: 
The  teacher  says,  "Write  the  word  that  means  t\\elve", 
and  the  pupil  writes  the  word  "dozen."  Pupils  read 
the  lists  for  verification. 


4.     ERASING  GAME: 

Purpose:     To  intensify  observation. 

.Method:  Write  on  the  blackboard  fi\'e  words  assigned  for 
the  spelling  lesson.  The  teacher  selects  one  pupil  to 
go  to  the  board  to  erase  a  word  w  hile  the  other  children 
have  heads  on  desks.     The  pupil  who  erased  the  word 

lb2 


Games" 


SPELLING      ERASING   GAME 
Dover  Street  School 


chooses  someone  to  name  the  word  erased  and  to  spell 
it  orally  or  to  write  it  in  its  place.  If  the  pupil  desig- 
natc^l  is  successliil.  he  is  permitted  to  lead  the  game. 


5.     FAMILY  GAML:: 

Purpose:     To  teach  the  spelling  of  analogous  wor^ls. 
Method:     Place  on  the  blackboari.1  (i\e  t\pe  words;    such 
as 

1.  night 

2.  day 

3.  make 

4.  sail 

5.  boat 

Allow  a  few  minutes  for  the  pupils  to  find  all  words 
belonging  lo  these  groups  on  a  specified  page  of  the 
reader,  writing  the  words  in  the  proper  columns. 
Allow  the  pupils  to  read   the  lists. 

lo3 


MiluKiukee  Public  Schools 

6.  I  lARD  NUTS  TO  CRACK: 

Purpose:     To  drill  difficult  words. 

Method:  Make  duplicates  of  difficult  words  on  small 
oval-shaped  pieces  of  cardboard  and  place  these  in  a 
box.  Provide  another  box  into  which  the  nuts  are  to 
be  dropped  as  they  are  cracked.  The  children  form 
in  line.  Each  child  takes  a  nut  from  the  box,  glances 
at  it,  and  spells  the  word  aloud.  If  he  spells  the  word 
correctly,  he  places  the  card  in  the  box  designated  to 
hold  the  cracked  nuts  and  passes  to  the  end  of  the 
line.  A  pupil  who  fails  in  the  first  attempt  remains 
at  the  box,  studies  his  word  and  tries  again.  The 
game  is  continued  until  all  of  the  nuts  have  been 
cracked. 

7.  MISSING  LETTERS: 

Purpose:  To  fix  the  form  of  a  word  through  close  obser- 
\ation. 

Method:  After  the  class  has  studied  the  words  of  a  lesson, 
a  pupil  passes  to  the  board  and  writes  the  first  letter 
of  a  word,  using  dashes  to  indicate  the  missing  letters. 
The  other  pupils  scan  the  lesson  to  find  the  word. 
The  first  pupil  who  finds  the  word  fills  in  the  missing 
letters  and  is  allowed  to  choose  a  word.  The  game 
may  be  varied  by  permitting  several  pupils  to  be 
leaders. 

8.  MOVE  TO  THE  RIGHT: 

Purpose:     To  review  a  long  list  of  words  in  a  short  time. 

Method:  The  pupils  pass  to  the  blackboard.  Beginning 
at  the  left  hand  side,  the  pupils  number  from  1  to  5 
writing  their  numbers  on  the  blackboard.  The  teacher 
dictates  fi\'e  w^ords  in  rapid  succession;    thus: 

12  3  4  5 

morning  light  spring  bright  happy 

She  continues  to  dictate  words  in  this  manner  until 
each  pupil  has  written  ten  words.  At  a  signal,  each 
pupil  steps  one  space  to  his  right  and  marks  his  neigh- 
bor's work.  The  pupils  keep  moving  to  the  right 
until  each  pupil  has  reviewed  the  entire  list. 

164 


^' Games  ' 

Q.     NIMBLE  BROWNIES: 

Purpose:     To  heighten  interest  by  means  of  action. 

Method:  Distribute  two  sets  of  alphabet  cards  so  that 
each  pupil  has  two  or  three  cards.  The  teacher  pro- 
nounces a  word  and  each  pupil  who  holds  a  letter  found 
in  that  word  runs  to  the  front.  The  word  is  spelled 
by  having  the  pupils  name  their  letters  in  quick  suc- 
cession. The  game  may  be  varied  by  dividing  the 
class  into  two  sections  to  see  which  section  can  form 
the  word  first.  In  keeping  the  score,  each  word  counts 
one  point. 

10.  PRISONER: 

Purpose:  To  review  for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining  which 
words  require  more  drill 

Method:  The  class  chooses  two  captains  who  in  turn 
choose  their  teams.  The  teacher  pronounces  alter- 
nately a  word  to  each  side.  If  a  word  is  misspelled  by 
one  side  and  is  correctly  spelled  by  the  other  side,  the 
winning  team  makes  a  captive  of  some  pupil  on  the 
losing  team.  The  pupil  who  misses  a  word  goes  to 
his  seat  and  writes  the  word  correctly.  When  all  of 
the  words  have  been  spelled,  the  team  which  has  the 
greater  number  standing  is  declared  the  w  inner.  Check 
the  misspelled  words  for  future  drill. 

11.  QUAKER  MEETING: 

Purpose:     Written  review. 

Method:  Divide  the  class  into  four  or  more  sections  work- 
ing simultaneously.  The  procedure  for  each  section 
is  as  follows:  A  pupil  steps  to  the  board  and  writes 
any  review  word.  Then  he  quietly  takes  his  scat  and 
the  next  pupil  passes  quickly  to  the  board.  In  com- 
puting the  score,  count  out  misspelled  words  and  dupli- 
cates. The  section  having  the  greatest  number  of 
words  wins. 

12.  SPELLING  SECRETS: 

Purpose:     To  impress  the  spelling  of  difficult   words. 


Miiuaiikce  Public  Schools 

MciIkkI:  The  teacher  writes  on  the  board  five  difficult 
words.  The  leader  of  the  game  chooses  a  word  and 
whispers  it  to  the  teacher.  Then  the  other  children 
in  turn  try  to  guess  his  word  by  asking,"  Is  it  r-o-u-g-h?" 
The  leader  replies,  "  It  is  not  rough.  ""The  game  is  con- 
tinued until  the  right  word  is  guessed.  The  pupil  who 
guesses  the  word  becomes  the  leader. 


13.     WHAT  IS  IT?: 

Purpose:     To  apply  phonics  in  learning  to  spell. 

Method:  The  pupils  have  their  spelling  books  open. 
One  pupil  selects  a  word  having  a  phonogram  and  the 
other  pupils  try  to  guess  the  word. 

First  Pupil:     "I  am  thinking  of  a  word  that  has  "ay' 

for  the  last  two  letters." 
Second  Pupil:     "Is  it  way?" 
First  Pupil:     "No,   it  is  not  way." 
Third  Pupil:     "Is  it  away?"" 
First  Pupil:     "Yes,  it  is  away." 

The   pupil   who   guesses   the   word    has   the   ne.xt 
chance  to  be  the  leader. 


GEOGRAPHY 


1.     ANIMAL  RACE: 

Purpose:  To  classify  the  principal  animals  according  to 
climatic  belts. 

Method:  Select  two  rows  of  children  to  participate  in 
the  race.  The  names  of  the  climatic  belts  are  placed 
on  two  blackboards,  as  follows: 

Hot  Cold  Temperate 

At  a  given  signal,  the  first  pupil  in  each  row  runs  to 
the  blackboard  and  writes  the  name  of  some  animal, 
placing   it  under   the   proper   heading.     He   then   runs 

166 


"Games" 

to  his  scat  and  the  next  pupil  has  his  turn       The  row 
w  hich  finishes  first  and  has  no  errors  w  ins  the  game. 

2.  AUTOMOBILE  TRIP: 

Purpose:     To  learn  how  LJircctions  are  indicated  on  a  map. 

Method:  The  chauffeur  selects  a  piece  of  colored  chalk 
to  indicate  the  color  of  his  automobile.  He  must 
follow  directions  given  by  the  other  players  who  form 
the  automobile  party.  A  certain  point  is  designated 
as  the  starting-point.  When  the  chauffeur  is  told  to 
go  "north,"  he  moves  his  chalk  toward  the  top  of  the 
blackboard.  He  continues  to  go  in  that  direction  until 
he  receives  the  order  to  go  "east,"  which  he  obeys  by 
moving  toward  the  right  hand  side  of  the  blackboard, 
etc. 

3.  Dtr-INITION  GAME: 

Purpose:  To  drill  the  definition  of  the  natural  features  of 
lani.!   and   water. 

Method:  The  leader  gives  the  definition  of  one  of  the 
natural  features  of  land  or  water;  thus:  "  I  am  think- 
ing of  a  body  of  land  surrounded  by  water."  He  then 
calls  upon  some  member  of  the  class  to  name  it  (island). 
The  pupil  who  answers  correctK'  becomes  the  next 
leader. 

4.  DlRLCriOX  CjAME: 

Purpose:     Drill  on  points  of  the  compass. 

Methoi.!:  Pupils  take  position  as  for  calisthenics.  Cji\c 
the  command  "North,  face!"  Follow  this  w  ith  "South, 
face!"  etc.  When  the  pupils  have  become  proficient 
in  indicating  the  lour  cardinal  points,  include  the 
semi-cardinal  points  in  giving  the  commani^ls. 

5.  IDENTIFICATION  GAME: 

Purpose:  'fo  identif\-  an  animal  from  a  brief  description 
of  it. 

Method:  Each  pupil  is  pro\ii.l(Yl  with  ten  colored  counters. 
The   leader   names   three  distinguishing  characteristics 

1(>7 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 

of  the  animal  of  which  he  is  thinking.  The  pupil  who 
names  the  animal  becomes  the  leader.  Any  pupil  who 
answers  incorrectly  must  give  one  of  his  counters  to 
the  leader.  The  pupil  who  has  the  most  counters  at 
the  end  of  the  game  wins. 

6.  RETURNING  HOME: 

Purpose:  Drill  on  the  cardinal  and  semi-cardinal  points 
of  the  compass. 

Method:  The  child  who  is  chosen  stations  himself  near 
the  table.  The  other  children  give  him  directions  for 
returning  to  his  seat;  for  example:  "  Walk  seven  steps 
south,"  etc. 

7.  RIDDLES  IN  RHYMES: 

An  answer  to  this   I   now  demand, 

It's  a  body  of  water  surrounded  by  land.     (Lake) 

Here's  a  body  of  land  surrounded  by  water. 

Now  answer  this,  my  little  daughter.     (Island) 

Five  masses  of  land  in  the  ocean  lie. 

Upon  them  are  mountains:  above  them,  the  sky.  (Con- 
tinents) 

On  both  sides  high  walls  you  will  see. 

Far  below,  green  meadows  there'll  be.  (Mountain  and 
valley) 

Where  the  shore  is  indented  just  like  a  bow, 

The  answer  to  this,   you  surely  will  know.      (Bay) 

8.  TRAVELING  GAME: 

Purpose:     Drill  in  directions  on  the  map. 

Method:  After  the  pupils  have  learned  the  continents, 
they  recognize  North  America  as  the  continent  on 
which  they  live.  On  the  map  of  North  America,  lo- 
cate the  United  States.  The  pupils  then  take  imagin- 
ary Journeys  to  different  places,  stating  the  direction 
of  the  route  in  going  and  in  returning. 

9.  UNKNOWN  VISITOR: 

Purpose:  To  re\iew  facts  learned  in  the  study  of  the 
"Seven  Little  Sisters.  " 

168 


"Games" 

Method:  Let  a  child,  called  the  visitor,  represent  one  of 
the  "Seven  Sisters."  The  other  pupils  try  to  find  out 
her  name  by  asking  questions  about  her  home.  The 
visitor  answers  "Yes"  or  "No"  to  each  question. 
If  the  pupils  do  not  succeed  in  finding  out  her  name 
after  several  questions  ha\e  been  asked,  the  unknown 
visitor  tells  her  name. 

10.     WEATHER  COCK: 

Purpose:  To  teach  how  winds  are  named  (after  the  point 
of  the  compass  from  which  they  blow). 

Method:  The  four  points  of  the  compass  are  represented 
by  the  corresponding  walls  of  the  room.  Several 
pupils  are  chosen  to  represent  the  winds  and  one  child 
is  chosen  to  be  the  weather  cock.  When  the  weather- 
cock calls  "North  wind,  blow!",  the  pupils  standing  at 
the  north  wall  run  toward  the  south,  waxing  their  arms 
and  blowing  as  they  go.  The  other  winds  are  produced 
in  a  similar  manner.  When  the  weather-cock  calls 
"Variable,"    the   pla\ers   run    in    \arious  directions. 


109 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 


I.     PROJECTS 
Bonser.  The  Elementary  School  Curriculum. 

Bobbitt.  What  the  Schools  Teach  and  Ivlight  Teach. 

The  Curriculum. 

Dewey.  Schools  of  To-morrow. 

How  We  Think. 
The  School  and  Society. 
Democracy  and  Education. 
Interest  and  Effort  in  Education. 

Dynes.  Socializing  the  Child. 

Hill.  Experimental  Studies  in  Kindergarten  Edu- 

cation. 

Kilpatrick.  The  Project  Method. 

Krackowizer.  Projects  in  the  Primary  Grades. 

Meriam.  Child  Life  and  the  Curriculum. 

MciVIurry.  Teaching  by  Projects. 

Scott.  Social  Education. 

Thorndike.  Education   for   Initiative  and  Originality. 

Weeks.  Socializing  the  Three  R"s. 

Wells.  A  Project  Curriculum. 


RECENT  TEXT-BOOKS  EXEMPLIFYING  THE 
PROJECT  METHOD 

Arithmetical     Essentials — Book    One;      Drushnel-Noonan- 
Withers — Lyon  and  Carnahan,  Chicago. 

Elementary    Lessons    in    Everyday    English:      Bolenius — 
American  Book  Co.,  Chicago. 

170 


"Bibliography" 


II.     GAMES 


Children's  Book  of  Games  and  Parties; 
Carolyn  Sherwin  Bailey. 
(M.  A.  Donohue  &  Co.,  Chicago.) 

Daily  Lesson  Plans  in  English; 
Caroline  Griffin. 
(Educational  Publishing  Co.,  Chicago.) 

Elson-Runkel  Primer — Teachers'  Edition; 

(Scott,  Eoresman  dsi  Co.,  Chicago.) 

Education   hy  Plays  and  Games-Johnson. 
(Ginn  &  Company,   Chicago.) 

I'irst  JourncNS  in   Numbcrland; 

Harris  &l  Waldo. 

(Scott,  Eoresman  &:  Co.,  Chicago.) 

First  Year  in  Number; 

Howe  and  Peet. 

(Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co.,  Chicago.) 

Five  Little  Strangers; 

Julia  Augusta  Schwartz. 
(American  Book  Co.,  Chicago.) 

Games  for  the  Playground,  1  lomc.  .School,  atKl  Ci\mnasium; 
Jessie  H.   Bancroh. 
(The  Macmillan  (>o.,   New   ^'ork.) 

Games  and  Rh\mes  for  Language  Teaching; 
yXlhambra  G.  Deming. 
(Beckley  Cardy  Co.,  Chicago.) 

Games,  Seat-Work  and  Sense  Training  E.xerciscs; 

Martha  Adelaide  Holton  and  Eugenia  Kimball. 

(A.   Flanagan  Co.) 

171 


Miiiruukee  Public  kScHooIs 

Games  to  Teach  Correct  English  to  Little  Ones; 
Emma  Watkins. 
(Clio  Press,   Iowa  City,   Iowa.) 

How   I   I3id   It; 

Grace  B.  Faxon. 

(F.  A.  Owen  Publishing  Co.,  Dansville,  X.  Y.) 

Language  Games; 

Myra  King. 

(Educational  Publishing  Co.,  Chicago.) 

Language  Games  for  All  Grades; 
Alhambra  Deming. 
(Beckley  Cardy  Co.,  Chicago.) 

Language  Games  for  Little  People; 
Emma  Watkins. 
(Clio  Press,   Iowa  City,   Iowa.) 

Language  Helps; 

Emma  Watkins. 

(Clio  Press,    Iowa  City,    Iowa.) 

Lessons  in   Ci\ics   for  the   Three  Primary  Grades  of  City 
Schools; 

Hannah  Margaret  Harris. 

(Bureau  of  Education,  Washington,  D.  C.) 

Number  Games  for  Primary  Grades; 
Harris  and  \\  aldo. 
(Beckley-Cardy  Co.,  Chicago.) 

Pamphlet  on  Arithmetic; 

State  Normal  School. 
Superior,  Wisconsin. 

Pamphlet  on  Arithmetic; 

Primary  Superintendent. 
Minneapolis,  Minn. 

Primary  Seat  and  Sense  Training; 

(Beckley-Cardy  Co.,   Chicago,    Illinois.) 

172 


"Bibliography" 

Social  Games  and  Group  Dances; 

J.  E.  Elsom  and  Blanche  Tillings. 
(J.  B.  Lippincott  Co.,  Philadelphia.) 

The  Play  Way; 

H.  Caldwell  Cook. 

(Frederick  A.  Stokes  Co.,  New  '^'ork.) 

The  Teaching  of  Sight  Words; 
Avis  Wescott, 
4725  South  Aldrich  St.,  Minneapolis,  Minn. 

Work  and  Play  With  Language; 

(Robbins  and  Row,  Chicago,   111.) 


173 


INDEX 


PAGES 

Alphabet  Game 161 

American  Flag 121 

Animal  Game 137 

Animal  Race 166 

Apartment  House 151 

Automobile  Race 1 67 

Ball  Game,  No.   1 138 

Ball  Game,  No.  2 138 

Balloon  Game 1 26 

Baseball  Game 162 

Bean  Bag  Game 151 

Blackboard  Ball  Game 156 

Bibliography 1 70 

Birds 79 

Birthday  Greetings 138 

Birthday  Party 24 

Boats 44 

Bobby  Wants  a  Place 149 

Book  Friends 126 

Bowling  Game    1 56 

Building  Block  Project 19 

Capti\e 160 

Card  Race 160 

Catch  Me  If  You  Can 126 

Child's  Grocery  Store 70 

Circle  Game  (Arithmetic) 149 

Circle  Game  (Reading) 127 

Circus,  No.   1 88 

Circus.  No.  2 90 

Clap  In,  Clap  Ouc 151 

Climb  the  Ladder 127 

Clock  Game 14*^ 

Completion  Game 134 

Counting  Out 128 

Cross  Race 128 

Definition  Game  (Geography) 167 

Definition  Game  (Spelling) 162 

Department  Store 139 

Detective  Game 1 28 

Direction Ib7 

Doll  House 52 

174 


"  Index 


PACES 


Doll  Project .23 

Dominoes 151 

Down  the  Line 157 

Easter  in  a  Primary  Room 29 

Elevator  Game 1 49 

Endless  Chain 157 

Eraser  Game 160 

Erasing  Game Ib2 

Family  Game 163 

Farm  Animals 72 

Farmer  in  the  Dell 132 

Faulty  Speech 1 39 

Finding  the  Combination 152 

First  and  Last 128 

Flash  Card  Game 155 

Flower  Gardening  in  Window  Boxes 38 

Follow  Directions 140 

Follow  the  Leader 128 

Forfeits 160 

Forward  and  Backward 152 

Friends 140 

Froggies  in  a  Pond 1 29 

Game  of  Actors ...     1 40 

Germination  of  Seeds 40 

Gingerbread  Boy 132 

Going  to  Jerusalem 1 29 

Grocery  Specials 157 

Grocery  Store 31 

Guessing  Game  (Language) 141 

Guessing  Game  (Reading) 12^^ 

Hard  Nuts  to  Crack hi4 

Health  Above  All 42 

Hen  and  Chickens 150 

Hide  and  Seek  (Language) 141 

Hide  and  Seek  (Reading) 1 2^> 

Holiday  Game 134 

Hop  Scotch  (Arithmetic) h^O 

Hop  Scotch  (Reading) .  I  ?"' 

Home 55 

Home  Building o3 

How  Food  is  Obtained 7ci 

Identification  Game l67 

Indian  Project 35 

Indian  \'illagc 83 

175 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 


PAGES 


In  the  Rins K'l 

luck  in  the  Box 130 

Listening  Game 1  42 

Lost  Child 1 45 

Magic  Gates 130 

Marble  Game 1  58 

Merry-Go-Round 130 

Mimic  Theater , 17 

Missing  Letters 1 04 

Missing  Numbers 150 

Missing  Word  Game 142 

Model  Store 94 

Mother  Goose  (Language) 142 

Mother  Goose  (Project) 47 

Mother  Goose  (Reading) 134 

Move  to  the  Right 1 64 

Movie  Game 130 

Newspaper  Game 135 

Nimble  Brownies 165 

Object  Game 1 43 

Occupation  Game 1  43 

Of  What  Am  I  Thinking^ 143 

Old  Woman  Who  Lives  in  a  Shoe 1 46 

Parcel  Post 130 

Password 133 

Pay  As  You  Enter 158 

Phrase  Race 135 

Picking  Apples 161 

Picnic 26 

Picture  Game  (Arithmetic) 150 

Picture  Game  (Language) 1 44 

Picture  Game  (Reading) 131 

Pilgrims 37 

Plan  for  Project  Teaching 12 

Playing  Beans 158 

Play  as  a  Factor  in  Education 125 

Playlet   to   Celebrate   the   Diamond    Jubilee   of   the   City   of   Mil- 
waukee    114 

Pocket  Game 155 

Pointer  Game 135 

Post  Office  (Project) 1 00 

Post  Office  (Reading) 131 

Prisoner 1  b5 

Pussy  Wants  a  Corner 131 

176 


"Index" 


Quaker  Meeting 165 

Quick  Pointers 153 

Railroad  Game 153 

Rain 104 

Reaching  the  Goal 153 

Relay  Race 153 

Returning  Home 1 68 

Rich  Man..  Poor  Man 150 

Riddles  in  Rhymes 168 

Robinson  Crusoe 85 

Running  the  Gauntlet 154 

Runaway  Words 131 

Sandtable  Desert ^)4 

Seat  Game 136 

Silent  Reading  Game,  No.   1 137 

Silent  Reading  Game.  No.  2 137 

Snap  Shots 132 

Synopsis  of  the  Project  Method 8 

Spelling  Secrets 1 65 

Spider  Web i  59 

Spinning  the  Arrow 1  59 

Spin  the  Platter 132 

Standards  for  Judging  School  Projects 16 

Story  of  Cocoa  and  Chocolate 103 

Story  of  Wheat 97 

Table  Game 155 

Table  Tag 154 

Taking  a  Walk 144 

Tapping I  '^  - 

Telephone  Game '  -^4 

Ten  in  Line 159 

Three  Bears 1  '^ 

Tick,  Tock.  Tow 13  3 

Top  and  Bottom 136 

Topsy  Turvy  Game 137 

Toy  Farm '  •*6 

Train  Game '  ^^^ 

Traveling  Game ...                           168 

Trip  to  Bookland ,                            1 36 

Two  Deep '5*^ 

Unknown  Visitor 168 

Up  and  Down 133 

Visitor  Game ....                                         '•♦("' 

Weather  Cock I69 

177 


Milwaukee  Public  Schools 


PAGES 


What   Is  It? 166 

Who  Has  the  Button? 147 

Wind 106 

Word  Oppositcs 1 47 

Word  Race 133 

Word  Series 1 47 

"Zoo" 117 


17S 


LOS  A' 


This  book  is 

DUE 

on  the  last  date  st 

amped  below 

I 

' 

JUL  g  9  1931 

1 

NOV  1  1  193r 

' 

49V  T.  -  ■-- 

1 

AUG  5      lb. 

I 

' 

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-■ 

OEC  18  1959 

- 

[ 

Form  L-9-35»i-8,'28 

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1027  'r.lilv/aukee. 
M64   Board  of 

scnooi  0.1- 
rectors  - 
Projects  and  ri  -; r- 
in  the  primary 
.i'udes.  I 


UCLA  Young   Research    Library 

LB1027   .M64 


y 


L   009    567    170   7 


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AA    001  230  901    9 


